The Society of Interventional Radiology (SIR) published revised guidelines April 2, for the image-guided interventional treatment of acute ischemic stroke.

A total of 11 other medical societies joined the SIR in endorsing the updated guidelines which were published in the Journal of Vascular and Interventional Radiology.

The revisions update standards first published in 2013 and creates 15 metrics on patient care and outcomes based on recent studies involving clot removal and opening blocked arteries. The new guidelines detail factors for selecting appropriate patients for interventional treatment and achieving top outcome such as time since the patient was “last known well,” pre-procedural imaging and clot location.

“The one constant in stroke treatment is time to opening the artery,” said David Sacks, MD, and interventional radiologist at Reading Hospital/Tower Health in West Reading, Pennsylvania, and the lead author of the standards in the release. “Seconds count from time of admission to successful treatment. Meeting the outcomes described in these guidelines will ultimately benefit patients by requiring strict adherence to a rapid treatment schedule.”