Please select the eligibility criteria that correspond to the clinical trial below.
Title: Randomised Trial of Contrast-enhanced Sonothrombolysis in Acute Ischaemic Stroke
Brief Summary: BACKGROUND: Thrombolytic drugs may dissolve blood vessel clots in acute ischemic stroke. The overall benefit of intravenous thrombolysis is substantial, but up to 2/3 of patients with large clots may not achieve re-opening of the vessel and up to 40% of the patients may remain severely disabled or die. Ultrasound accelerates clot break-up (lysis) when combined with thrombolysis (sonothrombolysis) and increases the likelihood of functional independence at 3 months. Adding intravenous ultrasound contrast (gaseous microspheres) further enhances the thrombolytic effect (contrast enhanced sonothrombolysis = CEST). Contrast enhanced ultrasound may also accelerate clot break-up in the absence of thrombolytic drugs (contrast enhanced sonolysis = CES).

HYPOTHESIS: Contrast enhanced ultrasound treatment administered within 4 1/2 hours after symptom onset may be given safely to patients with acute ischemic stroke, both to those receiving intravenous thrombolysis and those not receiving intravenous thrombolysis, and will improve clinical outcome.

AIMS: To compare efficacy and safety of contrast enhanced ultrasound treatment vs. no ultrasound treatment in patients with acute ischemic stroke receiving or not receiving intravenous thrombolysis.

STUDY ENDPOINTS: The primary endpoints are 1) neurological improvement at 24 hours (proof of concept) and 2) excellent clinical outcome at 3 months (effect). Secondary endpoints are bleeding complications (safety), brain damage (infarct size/location) and early clinical improvement (effect).


Options:
A: Inclusion Criteria:

* scoring 4 to 20 on the National Institute of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS)
* showing a perfusion-diffusion mismatch on MRI of 20 %
* enrolment within a 3 h to 9 h time window after symptom onset.
* 18-85 years of age

Exclusion Criteria:

* Participation in any interventional trial in the previous 30 days.
* Women in the childbearing age.
* Any history of intracranial hemorrhage, subarachnoid hemorrhage, neoplasm, arteriovenous malformation or aneurysm.
* Conditions that, according to the judgment of the investigator, might impose an additional risk to any individual stroke patient when receiving study medication (this applied to patients on platelet-function inhibitors as well).
* MRI exclusion criteria: Evidence of ICH, Evidence of SAH, Signs of extensive early infarction on DWI assessed by evidence of involvement of \>1/3 of the middle cerebral artery (MCA) territory. No perfusion deficit, Internal carotid artery (ICA) occlusion ipsilateral to stroke lesion without additional ipsilateral MCA, anterior cerebral artery (ACA) or posterior cerebral artery (PCA) occlusion. Any intracranial pathology that would interfere with the MRI assessment of acute ischemic stroke.
B: Inclusion Criteria:

* Ischemic stroke in the anterior circulation
* Treatment within 4.5 hours after stroke onset
* Informed consent

Exclusion Criteria:

* Patients with premorbid modified Rankin Scale (mRS) score ≥3;
* Patients for whom a complete NIH Stroke Score cannot be obtained;
* Hemiplegic migraine with no arterial occlusion on baseline CT;
* Seizure at stroke onset and no visible occlusion on baseline CT;
* Intracranial haemorrhage on baseline CT;
* Clinical subarachnoid haemorrhage even if baseline CT is normal;
* Large areas of hypodense ischaemic changes on baseline CT;
* Patients with primary endovascular treatment;
* Female, pregnant or breast feeding; pericarditis; sepsis; any other serious medical illness likely to interact with treatment; confounding pre-existent neurological or psychiatric disease; unlikely to complete follow-up; any investigational drug \<14 days;
C: Inclusion Criteria:

* Eligible for study treatment within 3-9 hours after onset of stroke symptoms.
* Score of 4-24 on the NIHSS with clinical signs of hemispheric infarction (i.e. hemiparesis) suggestive of ischemic stroke.

Inclusion Criteria from diagnostic imaging screening:

* Distinct penumbra (at least 20%), measured by MRI (PWI/DWI) or perfusion CT, related to middle cerebral artery (MCA), anterior cerebral artery (ACA), or posterior cerebral artery (PCA) territory in a hemispheric distribution.

Exclusion Criteria:

* History or clinical presentation of intracranial hemorrhage (ICH), subarachnoid hemorrhage, arteriovenous malformation, aneurysm, or cerebral neoplasm.
* Rapidly improving neurological symptoms.
* Pre-stroke MRS score of \> 1 (including previous disability).
* Suspected acute vertebral or basilar artery occlusion.
* Current use of anticoagulants and a prolonged prothrombin time.
* Uncontrolled hypertension.
* Baseline hematocrit of \< 0.25.
* Baseline platelet count \< 100,000/mm3.
D: Inclusion Criteria:

* scoring 4 to 20 on the National Institute of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS)
* showing a perfusion-diffusion mismatch on MRI of 20 %
* enrolment within a 3 h to 9 h time window after symptom onset.
* 18-85 years of age

Exclusion Criteria:

* Participation in any interventional trial in the previous 30 days.
* Women in the childbearing age.
* Any history of intracranial hemorrhage, subarachnoid hemorrhage, neoplasm, arteriovenous malformation or aneurysm.
* Conditions that, according to the judgment of the investigator, might impose an additional risk to any individual stroke patient when receiving study medication (this applied to patients on platelet-function inhibitors as well).
* MRI exclusion criteria: Evidence of ICH, Evidence of SAH, Signs of extensive early infarction on DWI assessed by evidence of involvement of \>1/3 of the middle cerebral artery (MCA) territory. No perfusion deficit, Internal carotid artery (ICA) occlusion ipsilateral to stroke lesion without additional ipsilateral MCA, anterior cerebral artery (ACA) or posterior cerebral artery (PCA) occlusion. Any intracranial pathology that would interfere with the MRI assessment of acute ischemic stroke.

Answer: B