European stroke journal

01 5 October 2026

DOI 10.1093/esj/aakag122

Interventions to reduce cognitive decline post-stroke: an umbrella review

Open DOI

Eugene Yee Hing Tang, Emma Jackson, Ram Bajpai et al.

Introduction: Post-stroke cognitive impairment (PSCI) remains a common problem that can lead to significant disability and dependency. Previous work suggested that methodologically robust trials were lacking and that there is continued u...

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02 5 October 2026

DOI 10.1093/esj/aakag121

Endovascular thrombectomy activity as a candidate marker of organised acute stroke-service capacity: a global burden of disease-based European panel study

Open DOI

Felix Gunzer, Fatih Dudic, Taylan D Kuzu et al.

Introduction: Acute stroke-care organisation might contribute to variation in ischaemic stroke outcomes across Europe. We assessed whether national endovascular thrombectomy activity was associated with Global Burden of Disease–derived i...

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03 5 October 2026

DOI 10.1093/esj/aakag123

Predominantly mild thrombocytopenia, haematoma expansion and clinical outcomes in intracerebral haemorrhage

Open DOI

Han Wang, Rui Cheng, Sijia Liu et al.

Introduction: Evidence regarding the prognostic significance of thrombocytopenia in spontaneous intracerebral haemorrhage (ICH) remains limited and inconsistent. We investigated its associations with haematoma expansion (HE), functional ...

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04 5 October 2026

DOI 10.1093/esj/aakag118

Intensive blood-pressure control for the prevention of major cardiovascular events in stroke patients: rationale and design of the OPTIMAL-STROKE trial

Open DOI

Gisele S Silva, M J Machline-Carrion, Karla Santo et al.

Background: In high cardiovascular risk populations without prior stroke, intensive blood pressure (BP) lowering confers greater reductions in cardiovascular events than standard targets. However, optimal BP targets in patients with isch...

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05 5 October 2026

DOI 10.1093/esj/aakag119

Albumin for patients with acute large vessel occlusive stroke undergoing endovascular therapy-2 (ARISE-2): protocol for a randomised controlled trial

Open DOI

Zilin Xu, Yuanyuan Liu, Yanbo Huang et al.

Background: Endovascular therapy is the standard of care for eligible patients with acute ischemic stroke due to LVO. However, nearly half of patients remain functionally dependent even after successful reperfusion. Albumin is a biologic...

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06 5 October 2026

DOI 10.1093/esj/aakag117

Early change and new onset of vascular pathology in cervical artery dissection: implications for surveillance

Open DOI

Robin Seihu, Tobias Hofmann, Frank Dömges et al.

Introduction: Antithrombotic therapy is central to stroke prevention after spontaneous cervical artery dissection (sCAD), but its efficacy may depend on the underlying vascular morphology. We examined the temporal course of vascular chan...

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07 5 September 2026

DOI 10.1093/esj/aakag114

MRI markers of brain fluid dynamics link reduced blood–brain barrier water exchange rate to disease severity in CADASIL

Open DOI

Yunqing Ying, Rong Zhou, Jianqi Li et al.

Background: Reduced water exchange rate (kw) across the blood–brain barrier has been linked to disease severity in cerebral autosomal dominant arteriopathy with subcortical infarcts and leukoencephalopathy (CADASIL), but the mechanisms u...

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08 5 September 2026

DOI 10.1093/esj/aakag113

European Stroke Organisation survey on reperfusion therapy practices

Open DOI

Michele Marvardi, Ronen Leker, Sumanjit Gill et al.

Introduction: Rapid reperfusion remains critical in acute ischaemic stroke, yet substantial prehospital delays persist. Clinicians across Europe widely use stroke code protocols and reperfusion strategies. However, clinicians lack routin...

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09 5 September 2026

DOI 10.1093/esj/aakag112

Machine learning versus conventional methods for prehospital detection of stroke due to large vessel occlusion or intracranial haemorrhage

Open DOI

Bjarty L Garcia, Luuk Dekker, Rene Bekker et al.

Introduction: Adequate prehospital triage of anterior-circulation LVO (aLVO) or ICH enables direct allocation to appropriate stroke centres. Traditional triage based on clinical scales or logistic regression may miss complex predictor in...

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10 5 September 2026

DOI 10.1093/esj/aakag115

Initial magnetic resonance imaging/magnetic resonance angiography may miss intracranial artery dissection in young adults with stroke: the role of subsequent imaging

Open DOI

Naoki Makita, Tomoyuki Ohara, Masahiro Makino et al.

Introduction: Intracranial artery dissection (IAD) is an important cause of ischaemic stroke in young adults; however, its diagnosis at initial presentation remains challenging. We aimed to determine how often initial magnetic resonance ...

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