METHODS: This is an international, multicenter, observational, prospective cohort study of patients admitted with acute ischemic stroke secondary to ICAS to stroke centers in six Asian countries. Stroke due to ICAS was diagnosed when there was a ≥50% intracranial large artery stenosis ipslateral to a non-lacunar infarct, without significant ipsilateral extracranial stenosis, cardiac cause or other mechanism found for the stroke. Data were collected on patient demographics, vascular risk factors, stroke location, and severity. Outcomes of interest were stroke recurrence and mortality at 12-month follow-up.
RESULTS: A total of 356 patients were recruited. Mean age was 62.7 ± 13.8 years, and 39.9% were females. Mean NIHSS on admission was 9 ± 8, with majority of patients having mild (39.3%) or moderate (37.9%) strokes. Stroke recurrence was 6.7% (95% CI: 4.4-9.9%) while mortality rate was 13.2% (95% CI: 9.9-17.2%) within 1 year. The risk of stroke recurrence was associated with increasing age (odds ratio [OR]: 1.04, 95% CI: 1-1.06, p = 0.05) and hypertension (OR: 3.23, 95% CI: 1.09-9.61, p = 0.035). Mortality was associated with age (OR: 1.05, 95% CI: 1.01-1.08, p = 0.006) and NIHSS (OR: 1.12, 95% CI: 1.07-1.17, p < 0.001).
CONCLUSIONS: This multicenter Asian study demonstrates a high risk of stroke recurrence and mortality among patients with acute stroke due to ICAS. They are associated with age (both), as well as hypertension (for recurrence) and NIHSS (for mortality). Better treatment modalities are needed to reduce the frequency of adverse outcomes in symptomatic ICAS.
SUMMARY: In this review, we examined recent epidemiological features of ischaemic stroke and intracerebral haemorrhage in Asia with recent developments in hyperacute stroke reperfusion therapy and technical improvements in intracerebral haemorrhage. The article also discussed the spectrum of cerebrovascular diseases in Asia, which include intracranial atherosclerosis, intracerebral haemorrhage, infective aetiologies of stroke, moyamoya disease, vascular dissection, radiation vasculopathy, and cerebral venous thrombosis.
KEY MESSAGES: The review of selected literature and recent updates calls for attention to the different requirements for resources within Asia and highlights the breadth of cerebrovascular diseases still requiring further research and more effective therapies.
METHODS: A cross-sectional survey using questionnaires was conducted among the representatives of ASEAN countries from October 2023 to March 2024.
RESULTS: Neurology training programs are available in 9 of the 11 ASEAN countries except Timor Leste and Cambodia. Despite the growing number of neurologists, with a doubling of the neurologist-to-patient ratio in most countries in the past 2 decades, the neurologist density per 100,000 population remained low. Thailand, Singapore, and Brunei Darussalam have more than 1 neurologist per 100,000 population compared with 2007 when only Singapore and Brunei Darussalam had more than this ratio. In Cambodia, Lao People's Democratic Republic (PDR), Myanmar, and Timur Leste, although the number of neurologists has increased substantially, the ratio of neurologists remains low, with less than 1 in a million population in Myanmar, 1:625,000 population in Lao PDR, 1:526,000 population in Cambodia, and 1:430,000 in Timur Leste. The total duration of training from undergraduate to certified neurologist varies greatly because of compulsory internal medicine (IM) training and postinternship services. To enroll in neurology training, candidates in 4 countries (Brunei, Singapore, Malaysia, and Myanmar) must have completed IM as a prerequisite. Candidates from Thailand and Indonesia must fulfill their 2-year compulsory government or general practice service requirement before they are eligible for neurology training. After fulfilling the eligibility criteria to enter neurology training, the overall training duration ranges from 3 to 13 years. Malaysia and Myanmar are countries where candidates spend more than 10 years becoming certified neurologists.
DISCUSSION: The number of neurologists and the neurologist-to-patient ratio have improved since 2007 in ASEAN countries. Diverse neurology curricula and the variable duration to complete neurology training and subspecialty practice are the main challenges in improving neurology training in ASEAN countries.
METHODS: Data from the CHInese Medicine NeuroAiD Efficacy on Stroke (CHIMES) and CHIMES-Extension (CHIMES-E) studies were analyzed. CHIMES-E was a 24-month follow-up study of subjects included in CHIMES, a multi-centre, double-blind placebo-controlled trial which randomized subjects with acute ischemic stroke, to either MLC601 or placebo for 3 months in addition to standard stroke treatment and rehabilitation. Subjects were stratified according to whether they received or did not receive persistent rehabilitation up to month (M)3 (non- randomized allocation) and by treatment group. The modified Rankin Scale (mRS) and Barthel Index were assessed at month (M) 3, M6, M12, M18, and M24.
RESULTS: Of 880 subjects in CHIMES-E, data on rehabilitation at M3 were available in 807 (91.7%, mean age 61.8 ± 11.3 years, 36% female). After adjusting for prognostic factors of poor outcome (age, sex, pre-stroke mRS, baseline National Institute of Health Stroke Scale, and stroke onset-to-study-treatment time), subjects who received persistent rehabilitation showed consistently higher treatment effect in favor of MLC601 for all time points on mRS 0-1 dichotomy analysis (ORs 1.85 at M3, 2.18 at M6, 2.42 at M12, 1.94 at M18, 1.87 at M24), mRS ordinal analysis (ORs 1.37 at M3, 1.40 at M6, 1.53 at M12, 1.50 at M18, 1.38 at M24), and BI ≥95 dichotomy analysis (ORs 1.39 at M3, 1.95 at M6, 1.56 at M12, 1.56 at M18, 1.46 at M24) compared to those who did not receive persistent rehabilitation.
CONCLUSIONS: More subjects on MLC601 improved to functional independence compared to placebo among subjects receiving persistent rehabilitation up to M3. The larger treatment effect of MLC601 was sustained over 2 years which supports the hypothesis that MLC601 combined with rehabilitation might have beneficial and sustained effects on neuro-repair processes after stroke. There is a need for more data on the effect of combining rehabilitation programs with stroke recovery treatments.