Using sophisticated imaging scans to study how stroke treatments work

Alteplase-Tenecteplase trial evaluation for stroke thrombolysis (ATTEST-2) imaging substudy

Professor Keith Muir, at the University of Glasgow, is leading a clinical trial called ATTEST-2 to test whether newer clot-busting drugs improve people’s chances of recovery after a stroke. Patients are invited to take part in ATTEST-2 based on simple clinical tests including a brain scan using computed tomography (CT). However, a simple CT brain scan provides little information for doctors about how the study drugs are affecting the underlying brain and blood vessels. Professor Muir and his team are running a smaller sub study using sophisticated brain scanning techniques that can be used to study how the drugs are working in detail. For example, they will study how well the drugs open blood vessels shortly after treatment, and how much brain tissue is recovered. The study will also test whether magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) can provide more detail about how individual patients respond to treatment and how to predict which patients are likely to benefit. The ATTEST-2 trial could change clinical practice in stroke treatment, and this imaging substudy will provide crucial biological evidence to support these changes.