Browsing by Author "Liu, Chi-Kuang"

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First-ever ischemic stroke in elderly patients: predictors of functional outcome following carotid artery stenting
(2016-01-01)
Lin, Chih-Ming
;
Chang, Yu-Jun
;
Liu, Chi-Kuang
;
Yu, Cheng-Sheng
;
Lu, Henry Horng-Shing
Age is an important risk factor for stroke, and carotid artery stenosis is the primary cause of first-ever ischemic stroke. Timely intervention with stenting procedures can effectively prevent secondary stroke; however, the impact of stenting on various periprocedural physical functionalities has never been thoroughly investigated. The primary aim of this study was to investigate whether prestenting characteristics were associated with long-term functional outcomes in patients presenting with first-ever ischemic stroke. The secondary aim was to investigate whether patient age was an important factor in outcomes following stenting, measured by the modified Rankin scale (mRS). In total, 144 consecutive patients with first-ever ischemic stroke who underwent carotid artery stenting from January 2010 to November 2014 were included. Clinical data were obtained by review of medical records. The Barthel index (BI) and mRS were used to assess disability before stenting and at 12-month follow-up. In total, 72/144 patients showed improvement (mRS[+]), 71 showed stationary and one showed deterioration in condition (mRS[-]). The prestenting parameters, ratio of cerebral blood volume (1.41 vs 1.2 for mRS[-] vs mRS[+]), BI ( 75 vs 85), and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP 5.0 vs 3.99), differed significantly between the two outcome groups (P<0.05). The internal carotid artery/common carotid artery ratio (P=0.011), BI (P=0.019), ipsilateral internal carotid artery resistance index (P=0.003), and HbA1c (P=0.039) were all factors significantly associated with patient age group. There was no significant association between age and poststenting outcome measured by mRS with 57% of patients in the >= 75 years age group showing mRS(-) and 43% showing mRS(+) (P=0.371). Our findings indicate that in our elderly patient series, carotid artery stenting may benefit a significant proportion of carotid stenotic patients regardless of age. Ratio of cerebral blood volume, BI, and admission hsCRP could serve as important predictors of mRS improvement and may facilitate differentiation of patients at baseline.
Impact of baseline characteristics on outcomes of carotid artery stenting in acute ischemic stroke patients
(2016-01-01)
Yu, Cheng-Sheng
;
Lin, Chih-Ming
;
Liu, Chi-Kuang
;
Lu, Henry Horng-Shing
;
生物科技學院
Carotid artery stenting is an effective treatment for ischemic stroke patients with moderate-to-severe carotid artery stenosis. However, the midterm outcome for patients undergoing this procedure varies considerably with baseline characteristics. To determine the impact of baseline characteristics on outcomes following carotid artery stenting, data from 107 eligible patients with a first episode of ischemic stroke were collected by retrospective chart review. A modified Rankin Scale (mRS) was used to divide patients into two baseline groups, mRS <= 2 and mRS >2. A three-step decision-tree statistical analysis was conducted. After weighting the decision-tree parameters, the following impact hierarchy was obtained: admission low-density lipoprotein, gouty arthritis, chronic kidney disease, ipsilateral common carotid artery resistance index, contralateral ophthalmic artery resistance index, sex, and dyslipidemia. The finite-state machine model demonstrated that, in patients with baseline mRS <= 2, 46% had an improved mRS score at follow-up, whereas 54% had a stable mRS score. In patients with baseline mRS > 2, a stable mRS score was observed in 75%, improved score in 23%, and a poorer score in 2%. Admission low-density lipoprotein was the strongest predictive factor influencing poststenting outcome. In addition, our study provides further evidence that carotid artery stenting can be of benefit in first-time ischemic stroke patients with baseline mRS scores > 2.
Is carotid sonography a useful tool for predicting functional capabilities in ischemic stroke patients following carotid artery stenting?
(2017-03-01)
Lin, Chih-Ming
;
Su, Jian-Chi
;
Chang, Yu-Jun
;
Liu, Chi-Kuang
;
Lu, Henry Horng-Shing
Carotid stenosis is a major cause of stroke and timely intervention with stenting manipulation can significantly reduce the risk of secondary stroke. The impact of stenting procedures on patient functional capabilities has not yet been explored. The primary aim of this study was to examine associations between periprocedural carotid sonography parameters and post-treatment functional capabilities in stroke patients. Sixty-seven patients who received carotid stenting at 1 angiography laboratory were included. Prestenting and poststenting carotid duplex data were recorded and resistance index (RI) differences at various carotid system locations were compared. The modified Rankin Scale (mRS) was used to assess functional capability. All of the studied parameters were analyzed by SPSS (version 16.0, SPSS Inc, Chicago, IL). Following stenting, mRS scores improved (n= 44) or remained stationary (n= 23). Net contralateral internal carotid artery (ICA) RI for patients with improved mRS was lower compared to that for patients with stationary mRS (median= 0.040 vs 0.11; P= 0.003). The contralateral common carotid artery RI before and after stenting differed significantly (P < 0.050) in both. The ipsilateral ICA RI differed (P < 0.050) only in patients with improved mRS. The difference in mean transit time, Barthel index, net ipsilateral ICA RI, net contralateral external carotid artery RI, postipsilateral common carotid artery RI, and postipsilateral ICA RI differed significantly between different baseline stroke severity groups (P < 0.050). Carotid artery stenting improved physical function in a proportion of ischemic stroke patients with carotid stenosis. Carotid ultrasound is a useful assessment tool to predict likely functional outcomes following carotid artery stenting.
Reversed ophthalmic artery flow following ischemic stroke: a possible predictor of outcomes following carotid artery stenting
(2019-01-01)
Lin, Chih-Ming
;
Liu, Chi-Kuang
;
Chang, Yu-Jun
;
Chen, Wei-Liang
;
Lu, Henry Horng-Shing
Stroke is the leading cause of death worldwide and stenosis of the carotid artery accounts for more than half of all cases. Carotid duplex is an effective non-invasive ultrasound test which identifies stroke patients with moderate to severe carotid stenosis who are candidates for preventative intervention to reduce the risk of recurrence. In patients with moderate to severe carotid stenosis, reversed ophthalmic artery flow (ROAF) is often observed at the time of the carotid duplex scan. In this study, we investigated whether ROAF, denoting exhaustion of cerebral collateral flow in ischemic stroke patients affected mid-term functional outcomes following carotid artery stenting (CAS) procedures. In total, 144 consecutive patients with a first episode of ischemic stroke and subsequent CAS procedure conducted between January 2010 and November 2014 at Changhua Christian Hospital, Taiwan were included. Clinical data were obtained by medical record review. Disability was assessed at two time points by utilising the Barthel Index (BI) and modified Rankin Scale (mRS) before CAS and 12 months post-CAS. Among 85 patients presenting without ROAF, 48/85 (56.4%) had improved mRS scores following stenting. The condition remained unchanged (stationary) in 36/85 (43.3%) patients after stenting and one patient exhibited deteriorated condition 1/85(1.1%). In contrast, among the 59 patients presenting with ROAF, 24/59 (40.6%) had improved mRS score following stenting. The condition remained unchanged (stationary) in the remaining 35/59 (59.3%) patients after stenting, and no patient exhibited deteriorated condition 0/ 59 (0 %). This study provides evidence that CAS is a valid and effective treatment option regardless of whether patients exhibited ROAF or not. Patients without ROAF were significantly more likely to have improved mid-term functional outcomes compared to those with ROAF. In the group without ROAF admission, CRP may play a role in predicting subsequent functional outcomes, whereas admission Barthel Index was a predictor of outcome in the ROAF group.
Role of Extracranial Carotid Duplex and Computed Tomography Perfusion Scanning in Evaluating Perfusion Status of Pericarotid Stenting
(2016-01-01)
Lin, Chih-Ming
;
Chang, Yu-Jun
;
Liu, Chi-Kuang
;
Yu, Cheng-Sheng
;
Lu, Henry Horng-Shing
Carotid stenting is an effective treatment of choice in terms of treating ischemic stroke patients with concomitant carotid stenosis. Though computed tomography perfusion scan has been recognized as a standard tool to monitor/ follow up this group of patients, not everyone could endure due to underlyingmedical illness. In contrast, carotid duplex is a noninvasive assessment tool and could track patient clinical condition in real time. In this studywe found that "resistance index" of the carotid ultrasound could detect flow changes before and after the stenting procedure, thus having great capacity to replace the role of computed tomography perfusion exam.