Researchers participated in the first human trial of using a thin wire equipped with electrical sensors, which can identify the characteristics of a stroke clot and map its structure in real time during its removal procedure.
The wire, called Clotild, was developed by the medical technology company Sensome. It is inserted into the blood vessels via a catheter, and tiny sensors at its tip measure the electrical properties of the surrounding tissue as it passes through the clot.
The electrical properties of red blood cells, platelets, and artery walls differ, allowing the device to distinguish between them during the procedure. This can provide doctors with information about the nature, location, and size of the clot—information usually only available after it has been removed and examined in a laboratory.
The trial involved approximately 41 patients who had suffered a stroke due to a blockage in a large blood vessel, in hospitals in Australia and France, with the aim of evaluating the device's safety and accuracy.
The results showed no cases of blood vessel perforation or dissection. The device also achieved an accuracy of 0.97 in detecting red blood cell-rich clots and 0.94 in detecting platelet-rich clots, on a scale where the ideal accuracy is 1.0.
The device was also able to identify the artery wall and the distal end of the clot, which could help doctors estimate its length without the need to inject a special substance. Researchers were also able to create a map of the clot's structure based on the readings the device recorded as it passed through it, and this map was consistent with the results of microscopic analysis of the clot fragments after its removal.
The importance of this technique lies in the fact that the composition of the clot can influence how it is removed, as clots rich in red blood cells differ from those rich in platelets. However, doctors usually do not know the nature of the clot before starting treatment.
The trial was led by Dr. Andrew Cheung from Australia and Aymeric Rochaud from France, with contributions from Professor Karen Doyle from the University of Galway and the Rennes Centre for Medical Devices. The results were published in the journal NeuroInterventional Surgery.
Doyle said that knowing the composition of the clot in real time could help doctors in the future to tailor the treatment method to each patient's condition, while Cheung said the trial showed that this technology could be safely incorporated into stroke treatment procedures.
what is your opinion on this news ?do let us know in the comments on tha comment box
if you liked this news article please share on friends & family & don't forget to follow on website & social media
