Endovascular intervention for cerebral watershed infarction due to severe stenosis of the middle cerebral artery is safe and effective: A Retrospective Study

Introduction The aim of this study was to compare the clinical outcomes of standard drug therapy and endovascular intervention for cerebral watershed infarction (WSI) due to severe stenosis of the middle cerebral artery.Methods 86 patients with WSI due to severe stenosis of middle cerebral artery were included 46 endovascular intervention patients and 40 standard drug patients. Clinical data were collected at the time of admission, discharge, and the 90-day return to the hospital for review.Results At the time of admission, there were no significant differences in the baseline data of age, gender, blood pressure, blood glucose, blood lipid, NIHSS, MOCA, or lifestyle characteristics such as smoking and drinking history(P>0.05).At 90 days after discharge, there were statistically significant differences in NHISS score(3.20 ± 1.65and4.35 ± 2.63,P=0.028), mRS score(0.69 ± 0.81and1.20 ± 0.96,P=0.01) and MOCA score(21.24 ± 3.72and19.02 ± 3.48,P=0.006) between the two groups.Conclusion The endovascular intervention for WSI due to severe stenosis of the middle cerebral artery has similar periprocedural complications and better outcomes compared to standard drug therapy.