Abstract Background and aims Our center participated in one of the pivotal trials that showed endovascular thrombectomy (EVT) in large vessel occlusion (LVO) stroke patients improves functional outcome. We report 10-year trends and outcomes from our center, which provides EVT to 2.8 million people in northern New Zealand. Methods An audit of all patients treated with EVT between 1 March 2015 and 1 March 2025 using data from the compulsory National Stroke Reperfusion Therapy Registry. Baseline characteristics, treatment variables and 3-month outcomes were analysed. Functional independence was defined as a modified Rankin Scale score 0–2. Subgroup analyses were performed for anterior and posterior circulation LVOs. Results 2184 patients were treated with EVT (48% women; mean age 67.6 years), with increasing numbers treated every year. 1404 (63.8%) required inter-hospital transfer, 638 (29.2%) via air ambulance. 1015 (46.5%) were treated with intravenous thrombolysis. Successful reperfusion (TICI 2b–3) was achieved in 1868 (85.5%) of cases. At day-90, 1095 (51.9%) were functionally independent, 1506 (72.8%) were living at home and 327 (15.5%) had died. 1973 (90.3%) patients had anterior LVO and at day-90, 1024 (53.7%) were functionally independent, 1401 (71.0%) were living at home and 256 (13.4%) had died. Conclusions In this real-world study, outcomes after EVT are comparable to meta-analyses of randomized-controlled trials, despite the logistical complexities of a large hub-and-spoke service where over a quarter of patients are transferred by air for treatment. The growing number of patients treated with EVT reflects the maturation of our service and an expansion of eligibility criteria. Conflict of interest Barbe PA: nothing to disclose
Naing et al. (Fri,) studied this question.