Imaging and modelling in acute ischemic stroke: Quantifying thrombus and residual blood flow characteristics

This thesis focuses on one of the most devastating conditions the brain can suffer from: acute ischemic stroke. An acute ischemic stroke occurs when a thrombus occludes one of the major intracranial arteries in the brain. The lack of blood supply quickly turns into a rapidly growing infarction, which requires immediate treatment. Currently, there are two treatments aimed at restoring cerebral perfusion. Still, patients often end up requiring lifelong care. Quantifying the characteristics of the occluding thrombus and how these characteristics influence treatment and patient outcome can improve our understanding on stroke, and therefore, may lead to better treatment of stroke patients. Currently, the most straightforward way to assess thrombus characteristics is via radiological imaging, which is part of the standard-of-care to diagnose stroke.
In this thesis, we aim to quantify thrombus and residual blood flow characteristics extracted from radiological imaging data of acute ischemic stroke patients, as well as to identify differences in these characteristics associated with better treatment and patient outcome. In addition, with the emerging use of in-silico models in stroke and their potential use for the optimization of patient-specific treatment, we aim to show how accurate models are required to correctly model the interaction between the thrombus and treatment device.