Cerebrolysin® as an Adjuvant Therapy After Mechanical Thrombectomy in Cardioembolic Stroke
Acute ischemic stroke (AIS) remains a major global health challenge, with high mortality rates and significant long-term disability. While mechanical thrombectomy (MT) has revolutionized stroke treatment by improving recanalization rates, many patients still struggle to regain full functional recovery. Considering this, researchers are now turning their attention to cerebroprotection strategies aimed to minimize reperfusion injury and hemorrhagic transformation enhancing post-stroke recovery.
The most promising compound is Cerebrolysin®, a neurotrophic peptidergic drug with demonstrated neuroprotective properties. A recent study “Cerebrolysin® as an adjuvant therapy after mechanical thrombectomy in large vessel occlusion cardioembolic stroke: a propensity score matching analysis” published in Frontiers in Neurology 2025 has demonstrated that Cerebrolysin®, when used as an adjuvant therapy following MT, significantly improves outcomes in patients suffering from large vessel occlusion after cardioembolic stroke.
Professor Ahmed ElBassiouny et al compared patients who received standard post-thrombectomy care with those who received additional Cerebrolysin® treatment. The findings revealed that 64% of patients treated with Cerebrolysin® achieved a modified Rankin Scale (mRS) score between 0 and 2 at 90 days, indicating functional independence, compared to only 34.7% in the control group.
Furthermore, the Cerebrolysin® group exhibited consistently lower National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) and mRS scores at all study checkpoints.
Furthermore, the incidence of hemorrhagic transformation was significantly reduced in the Cerebrolysin® group (20%) versus the control group (57.3%).
These results suggest that incorporating Cerebrolysin® into the treatment regimen after mechanical thrombectomy may enhance neurological recovery, reduce complications in cardioembolic stroke patients and improve outcomes post-stroke.
This study is one of four recent CERECAP-publications (Poljakovic et al, Khasanova et al, Kalinin et al) that have already shown similar significant improvements in outcome.
Cerebrolysin® increases safety and efficacy after MT