Comparative study of intravenous thrombolysis with rt-PA and urokinase for patients with acute cerebral infarction

OBJECTIVE: Cerebral infarction has a poor prognosis and causes a serious burden on families and society. Recombinant tissue plasminogen activator (rt-PA) and urokinase (UK) are commonly used thrombolytic agents in the clinic. However, direct and powerful clinical trial evidence to determine the therapeutic effect of rt-PA and UK on intravenous thrombolysis is lacking. METHODS: In this study, 180 patients with acute cerebral infarction were treated with rt-PA or UK. The National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) scores, Barthel index, bleeding complications, and biomarkers were evaluated. RESULTS: No significant differences in NIHSS or Barthel scores were found between the groups. However, UK increased the risk of intracranial haemorrhage compared with rt-PA. rt-PA had increased activity in reducing serum levels of MMP-9 than UK. CONCLUSION: Intravenous thrombolysis with rt-PA and UK in the time window of acute cerebral infarction can achieve similar therapeutic effects, but rt-PA can further reduce the risk of cerebral haemorrhage and is relatively safer than UK.