Number of Retrieval Attempts and the Association of Intravenous Tirofiban with Symptomatic Intracranial Hemorrhage in Patients with Successful Endovascular Therapy: Results of the RESCUE BT Trial

Purpose: To investigate the relationship between intravenous tirofiban, the number of retrieval attempts and symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage (sICH) in patients with successful EVT. Patients and Methods: We used the data from the Endovascular Treatment With versus Without Tirofiban for Patients with Large Vessel Occlusion Stroke (RESCUE BT) Trial. The primary outcome was sICH, which was defined according to the Heidelberg Bleeding Classification. The association between the number of retrieval attempts and the rate of sICH was investigated using multivariable logistic regression. Results: A total of 866 patients were included in our analysis. In overall cohort, tirofiban (OR: 1.853, 95% CI: 1.039-3.307) and more than 2 passes (3 versus 0-1: OR: 2.482, 95% CI: 1.124-5.481; 2 versus 0-1: OR: 0.813, 95% CI: 0.389-1.696) were significantly associated with the occurrence of sICH. A significant interaction between the use of tirofiban and the increasing number of attempts was found (p for interaction = 0.02), whereby the presence of sICH was significantly associated with tirofiban (OR: 5.534, 95% CI: 1.586-19.315) in the subgroup of multiple passes (>2 passes group), while none was seen in the subgroup of 0-2 passes. The results of the sensitivity analysis also showed that more than 2 passes (3 versus 1: OR: 2.841, 95% CI: 1.102-7.323; 2 versus 1: OR: 0.852, 95% CI: 0.346-2.097) were significantly associated with the occurrence of sICH in the tirofiban group but not in the placebo group. Conclusion: In patients with multiple attempts, intravenous tirofiban may increase the risk of sICH. Further research and individualized risk assessment are necessary to determine the most appropriate strategy of intravenous tirofiban for EVT patients, especially considering details of thrombectomy procedures.