Treatment of Progressive Stroke with Tirofiban – Experience in 35 Patients

<i>Background:</i> In an open pilot study, we studied the safety and efficacy of treatment with the nonpeptide glycoprotein IIb/IIIa antagonist tirofiban in patients with progressive ischemic stroke. The rationale for the use of tirofiban in progressive stroke is the effect on vessel patency and microcircu lation. <i>Methods:</i> Patients with acute ischemic stroke and progression of ≥2 points on the National Institute of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) in the first 96 h after stroke onset were treated with intravenous tirofiban. Serial NIHSS measurements and intra- and extracerebral bleeding complications were recorded. <i>Results:</i> Progressive stroke was observed in 35 patients with a mean progression of 5.4 (SD 4.1) points on the NIHSS. No severe bleeding complications occurred during tirofiban treatment. Analysis of variance revealed a significant interaction between stroke etiology (small-vessel vs. large-vessel occlusion) and NIHSS during treatment with tirofiban: patients with small-vessel occlusion showed significant improvement, while patients with large-vessel occlusion did not. The mean NIHSS improvement after tirofiban infusion was 3.4 (SD 3.4) for small-vessel occlusion versus 0.8 (SD 4.2) for large-vessel occlusion (p = 0.048). <i>Conclusion:</i> Treatment with tirofiban was well tolerated in patients with progressive stroke. However, only patients with small-vessel occlusion recovered significantly during infusion of tirofiban. The effect of tirofiban in progressive stroke and different subgroups of stroke deserves to be studied in a randomized controlled trial.