Intra-arterial therapy for acute stroke: trials and tribulations.

Mahesh V. Jayaraman, MD, Richard A. Haas, MD, and Sun H. Ahn, MD  stroke Is A DevAstAtIng DIseAse, Affecting over 750,000 individuals in the United States each year. For patients with acute ischemic stroke, intra-venous tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) is a breakthrough treatment which improves outcomes when given within 4.5 hours from symptom onset. However, some patients are ineligible for intra-venous tPA (IVT) and some fail to respond. In those instances, direct intra-arterial therapy (IAT) offers patients a treatment option. In this article, we will examine the past, present and future of IAT for acute ischemic stroke.