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Evidence-Based Supplement Research
Evidence-Based Supplement Research

Intra-Arterial Tenecteplase After Successful Reperfusion in Large Vessel Occlusion Stroke: A Randomized Clinical Trial.

  • 2025-09-01
  • JAMA neurology 82(9)
    • Xianhua Hou
    • Jiacheng Huang
    • Li Wang
    • Yuxuan He
    • Jiaxing Song
    • Changwei Guo
    • Shihai Yang
    • Xiaolei Shi
    • Lin Chen
    • Qu Liu
    • Junfeng Su
    • Lin Zeng
    • Maojun Jiang
    • Boyu Chen
    • Xiangping Cheng
    • Shengli Chen
    • Honghua Pan
    • Xiaoping Shen
    • Youlin Wu
    • Xionglin Tang
    • Jian Wang
    • Shibo Han
    • Tianqiang Pu
    • Changchuan Wu
    • Fengguang Li
    • Lunxue Qu
    • Zhong Fu
    • Hua Liu
    • Yu Li
    • Bin Mei
    • Yanbo Cheng
    • Zicheng Hu
    • Haochun Zhang
    • Tao Lv
    • Min Wu
    • Ruchuang Xu
    • Qinglin Ye
    • Liangbo Kong
    • Shuai Mi
    • Junhua Wu
    • Yu Wang
    • Zhenxuan Tian
    • Wenzhe Sun
    • Jinfu Ma
    • Xu Xu
    • Yazhou Wu
    • Duolao Wang
    • Raul G Nogueira
    • Thanh N Nguyen
    • Jeffrey L Saver
    • Wenjie Zi
    • Zhenhua Zhou

Study Design

Type
Randomized Controlled Trial (RCT)
Sample size
n = 205
Population
patients with LVO and successful reperfusion within 24 hours of last known well
Methods
phase 1b (dose-escalation, nonrandomized) and phase 2a (dose-expansion, randomized); intra-arterial tenecteplase 0.0313, 0.0625, 0.1250, 0.1875 mg/kg in phase 1b; in phase 2a, intra-arterial tenecteplase 0.0313 or 0.0625 mg/kg, or control
Blinding
Open-label
Duration
24 months (2023–2024) with follow-up through November 2024
  • Large Human Trial

Importance

The optimal dose, safety, and efficacy of intra-arterial tenecteplase after successful reperfusion by endovascular thrombectomy for large vessel occlusion (LVO) is unknown.

Objective

To evaluate the dose-dependent adverse events and signals of efficacy of intra-arterial tenecteplase in LVO after successful reperfusion with thrombectomy, defined as an Extended Treatment in Cerebral Infarction score of 2b-3.

Design, setting, and participants

This open-label, blinded-outcome assessment trial, incorporating a 14 + 8 dose-escalation (phase 1b, nonrandomized) and dose-expansion (phase 2a, randomized) design, was conducted in China between 2023 and 2024, with follow-up continuing through November 2024. This was a multicenter clinical trial including patients with LVO and successful reperfusion within 24 hours of last known well.

Interventions

In phase 1b, intra-arterial tenecteplase, 0.0313, 0.0625, 0.1250, 0.1875 mg/kg; in phase 2a, intra-arterial tenecteplase 0.0313 or 0.0625 mg/kg, or control (without intra-arterial thrombolysis).

Main outcomes and measures

The primary outcome in phase 1b was symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage (sICH) within 24 hours. The primary outcome in phase 2a was 90-day no-disability outcome (modified Rankin Scale score 0-1).

Results

A total of 205 patients (phase 1b: 48, phase 2a: 157) were enrolled and analyzed. The median (IQR) age was 71 (60-77) years, and 113 (55.1%) were male. In phase 1b, 1 of 14 and 2 of 22 patients with sICH were observed at dose tiers 0.0313 and 0.0625 mg/kg, respectively. Three of 12 patients had sICH at dose tier 0.1250 mg/kg, exceeding the prespecified safety threshold (P = .04). In phase 2a, eligible patients were randomly assigned to receive tenecteplase, 0.0313 mg/kg (n = 46) and 0.0625 mg/kg (n = 46), and 65 patients composed the control group. The primary outcome occurred in 22 of 65 patients (33.8%) in the control group, 17 of 46 patients (37.0%) in the tenecteplase, 0.0313 mg/kg, group (adjusted risk ratio [RR] vs control, 0.85; 95% CI, 0.54-1.35; P = .50), and 20 of 46 patients (43.5%) in the tenecteplase, 0.0625 mg/kg, group (adjusted RR, 1.15; 95% CI, 0.73-1.80; P = .55). No significant difference in the safety outcomes was observed among the 3 groups.

Conclusions and relevance

Results of this phase 1 and 2 randomized clinical trial reveal that adjunctive intra-arterial tenecteplase dosages of 0.0313 mg/kg or 0.0625 mg/kg after successful reperfusion in patients with anterior circulation LVO showed adequate safety to advance to larger trials to determine the potential therapeutic benefits.

Trial registration

ChiCTR.org.cn Identifier: ChiCTR2300073787 and ChiCTR2400080624.

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