Preliminary experience of mechanical thrombectomy treatment in pediatric arterial ischemic stroke: a retrospective case series
- 1Department of Neurosurgery, Shenzhen Children’s Hospital, Shenzhen, 518026 China
- 2Department of Radiology, Shenzhen Children’s Hospital, Shenzhen, 518026 China
- 3Department of Dermatology, Zhujiang Hospital of Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, 510280 China
Abstract
Objective: To evaluate the feasibility and efficacy of mechanical thrombectomy in the treatment of pediatric acute ischemic stroke (AIS).
Methods: The clinical data, radiographic results and management outcomes of children diagnosed with AIS and treated at our hospital between 2016 and 2021 were retrospectively analyzed.
Results: A total of 8 patients (4 male and 4 female) were included, with a mean age of 7.8 ± 2.8 years. All patients presented with focal neurological deficits at onset, including hemiplegia, facial deviation, mild limb weakness, dizziness, and headache, with Pediatric National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (PedNIHSS) scores ranging from 4 to 12 on presentation. Six patients had isolated middle cerebral artery occlusion, one bilateral posterior cerebral artery occlusion, and one had combined middle cerebral and anterior cerebral artery occlusion. Half of the patients underwent two mechanical thrombectomy procedures. After treatment, all patients achieved a modified Thrombolysis in Cerebral Infarction (mTICI) score of ≥2b. The median follow up duration was 20.13 months (range, 6–32 months). At the 6-month follow-up, all patients had the pediatric modified Rankin Scale (mRS) scores of 0 to 1.
Conclusion: Our preliminary experience suggests that mechanical thrombectomy is technically feasible and may be associated with favorable short- to medium-term functional outcomes in carefully selected pediatric patients with large vessel AIS. However, due to the retrospective design, small sample size, and lack of a control group, further multicenter prospective studies are warranted to better evaluate the safety and clinical outcomes of this procedure in pediatric patients.
Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at https://doi.org/10.1186/s12887-026-07431-z.
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BibTeX
@article{zhou2026preliminary,
title = {{Preliminary experience of mechanical thrombectomy treatment in pediatric arterial ischemic stroke: a retrospective case series}},
author = {Yangyang Zhou and Shicheng Li and Yijiang Zhuang and Zhengfeng Li and Kaiying Yang},
journal = {BMC Pediatrics},
year = {2026},
month = aug,
doi = {10.1186/s12887-026-07431-z},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1186/s12887-026-07431-z},
note = {CC BY-NC-ND 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Preliminary experience of mechanical thrombectomy treatment in pediatric arterial ischemic stroke: a retrospective case series
AU - Yangyang Zhou
AU - Shicheng Li
AU - Yijiang Zhuang
AU - Zhengfeng Li
AU - Kaiying Yang
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/08/10
JO - BMC Pediatrics
DO - 10.1186/s12887-026-07431-z
UR - https://doi.org/10.1186/s12887-026-07431-z
AB - Objective: To evaluate the feasibility and efficacy of mechanical thrombectomy in the treatment of pediatric acute ischemic stroke (AIS). Methods: The clinical data, radiographic results and management outcomes of children diagnosed with AIS and treated at our hospital between 2016 and 2021 were retrospectively analyzed. Results: A total of 8 patients (4 male and 4 female) were included, with a mean age of 7.8 ± 2.8 years. All patients presented with focal neurological deficits at onset, including hemiplegia, facial deviation, mild limb weakness, dizziness, and headache, with Pediatric National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (PedNIHSS) scores ranging from 4 to 12 on presentation. Six patients had isolated middle cerebral artery occlusion, one bilateral posterior cerebral artery occlusion, and one had combined middle cerebral and anterior cerebral artery occlusion. Half of the patients underwent two mechanical thrombectomy procedures. After treatment, all patients achieved a modified Thrombolysis in Cerebral Infarction (mTICI) score of ≥2b. The median follow up duration was 20.13 months (range, 6–32 months). At the 6-month follow-up, all patients had the pediatric modified Rankin Scale (mRS) scores of 0 to 1. Conclusion: Our preliminary experience suggests that mechanical thrombectomy is technically feasible and may be associated with favorable short- to medium-term functional outcomes in carefully selected pediatric patients with large vessel AIS. However, due to the retrospective design, small sample size, and lack of a control group, further multicenter prospective studies are warranted to better evaluate the safety and clinical outcomes of this procedure in pediatric patients. Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at https://doi.org/10.1186/s12887-026-07431-z.
SN - 1471-2431
ER -