Baseline demographics of patients treated with early versus routine anticoagulation
| Early anticoagulation (n=141) | Routine anticoagulation (n=116) | P value | |
| Common patient characteristics | |||
| Age, years | 71 (62–78) | 73 (65–79) | 0.15 |
| Male | 52 (36.9%) | 56 (48.3%) | 0.07 |
| Admission NIHSS | 16 (12–21) | 15 (12–18) | 0.02* |
| Ischaemia in left hemisphere | 74 (52.5%) | 59 (50.9%) | 0.80 |
| Treatment with intravenous thrombolysis | 66 (46.8%) | 38 (32.8%) | 0.02* |
| Premorbid oral antithrombotic use | 50 (35.5%) | 42 (36.2%) | 0.90 |
| Smoke | 28 (19.9%) | 29 (25.0%) | 0.32 |
| Hypertension | 64 (45.4%) | 78 (67.2%) | <0.01* |
| Diabetes mellitus | 32 (22.7%) | 31 (26.7%) | 0.46 |
| Previous stroke | 16 (11.3%) | 22 (19.0%) | 0.09 |
| Systolic blood pressure, mm Hg | 142.56±23.51 | 146.49±23.40 | 0.19 |
| Diastolic blood pressure, mm Hg | 83.62±16.26 | 86.62±16.26 | 0.15 |
| INR | 1.05 (0.99–1.13) | 1.06 (0.98–1.12) | 0.70 |
| Thrombocyte count, 109/L | 176 (139–220) | 170 (143–224) | 0.95 |
| Glucose level, mmol/L | 7.50 (6.15–9.20) | 7.25 (5.68–9.40) | 0.34 |
| CHA2DS2-VASc Score | 5 (3–5) | 5 (4–6) | 0.13 |
| HAS-BLED Score | 3 (3–4) | 3 (3–4) | 0.18 |
| Heparin during procedure | 64 (45.4%) | 27 (23.3%) | <0.01* |
| Tirofiban during procedure | 36 (25.5%) | 38 (32.8%) | 0.20 |
| Imaging | |||
| ASPECETS | 9 (8–10) | 9 (8–10) | 0.50 |
| Occlusion site | 0.73 | ||
| ICA | 39 (27.7%) | 27 (23.3%) | |
| MCA-M1 | 77 (54.9%) | 67 (57.8%) | |
| MCA-M2 | 25 (17.7%) | 22 (19.0%) | |
| Reperfusion before intervention (mTICI) | 0.78 | ||
| 0 | 119 (84.4%) | 96 (82.8%) | |
| 1 | 8 (5.7%) | 9 (7.8%) | |
| 2a | 5 (3.5%) | 6 (5.2%) | |
| 2b | 9 (6.4%) | 4 (3.4%) | |
| 3 | 0 (0.0%) | 1 (0.9%) | |
| Workflow, min | |||
| Symptom onset to admission ER | 204 (105–353) | 139 (80–251) | 0.01* |
| Admission ER to groin puncture | 123 (97–162) | 138 (95–180) | 0.36 |
| Duration procedure | 60 (40–97) | 85 (50–135) | 0.01* |
| Symptom onset to reperfusion | 435 (315–591) | 400 (305–544) | 0.25 |
Baseline variables with early versus routine anticoagulation.
*P<0.05.
ASPECTS, Alberta Stroke Programme Early CT Score; CHA2DS2-VASc, (Congestive heart failure, Hypertension, Age ≥75 years [double weight], Diabetes, previous Stroke [double weight], Vascular disease, Age 65–74 years, female Sex category) a tool developed for finding risk factors for thromboembolic events in patients with atrial fibrillation; ER, emergency room; HASBLED, (Hypertension, Abnormal renal/liver function, Stroke, Bleeding history or predisposition, Labile international normalized ratio, Elderly (> 65 years), Drugs/alcohol concomitantly) one risk stratification scheme of several that has been validated to estimate baseline risk of major hemorrhage; ICA, internal carotid artery; INR, international normalised ratio; MCA-M1/M2, the first/second segment of middle cerebral artery; mTICI, modified thrombolysis in cerebral infarction; NIHSS, National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale.