Endovascular Thrombectomy VS. Medical Treatment for Mild Stroke Patients: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Background and purpose At present, endovascular thrombectomy (EVT) has been gradually became a standard therapy for stroke patients caused by emergent large-vessel occlusion (ELVO). However, the question about whether EVT is superior to medical treatment for mild stroke patients presenting with a low baseline National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) score remains unclear. The aim of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to compare the safety and efficacy of EVT with medical treatment in mild stroke patients. Material and methods A systematic review and meta-analysis was conducted through searching the PubMed, Embase and Cochrane Library databases. All statistical analyses were performed by using Review Manager 5.3 software. Primary outcomes of this meta-analysis were as follows: favorable functional outcome at 90 days (defined as a modified Rankin scale (mRS) score of 0–2); excellent functional outcome at 90 days (defined as a mRS score of 0–1); symptomatic intracerebral hemorrhage (sICH); mortality at 90 days. Results A total of 13 eligible studies with 2135 patients were included in this meta-analysis. The pooled results indicated that mild stroke patients underwent EVT had higher risk of sICH than those receiving medical treatment alone (OR = 3.21; 95% CI, 1.98–5.22; P < 0.001). In addition, no significant difference was found between the two groups in mortality at 90 days (OR = 1.80; 95% CI, 0.88–3.65; P=0.11). Meanwhile, no significant difference was found between the two groups in patients achieving favorable functional outcome at 90 days and excellent functional outcome at 90 days (OR = 1.10; 95% CI, 0.74–1.64; P = 0.65) (OR = 1.03; 95% CI, 0.79–1.35; P = 0.80). Conclusions Our pooled results showed similar clinical outcomes at 90 days of EVT and medical treatment in mild stroke patients with ELVO, although patients underwent EVT had higher rates of sICH. However, due to several limitations of this meta-analysis, randomized controlled trials are needed to further evaluate the potential efficacy of EVT in mild stroke patients.