

WADE SMITH, University of California, San Francisco
Mechanical removal of the clot that’s causing an acute stroke is showing promising early signs, and is safe. The first of a new generation of the MERCI (Mechanical Embolus Removal in Cerebral Ischemia) devices for removing clots has compared favorably to its predecessors and can also be used in patients for whom the standard therapy, thrombolysis, has failed. Wade Smith on behalf of the MERCI investigators talked to Helen Morant about the results.