Abstract #0501

Schaewe T, Shin J, Alger J, Kidwell C, Copenhaver B

MR and Recanalization of Stroke Clots Using Embolectomy (MR RESCUE) is an NIH-sponsored, multi-center clinical trial of mechanical embolectomy versus medical management using acute MRI for patient stratification and randomization. For this trial we have developed an automated computer system that generates a predictive map of irreversible infarct versus salvageable (penumbral) tissue from perfusion- and diffusion-weighted MRI. The computed predictive map is used to categorize patients according to the presence or absence of salvageable tissue to prove or disprove the hypothesis that acute MRI may be used to identify patients most likely to respond to mechanical embolectomy for treatment of acute ischemic stroke. The system is presently deployed at 10 (of 20 planned) clinical sites in the United States and Canada.