Shuxuetong for Prevention of recurrence in Acute Cerebrovascular events with Embolism (SPACE) trial: rationale and design

BACKGROUNDS: Embolic stroke is one of the main mechanisms of ischaemic stroke. Even if treated with recommended antithrombotic agents, stroke recurrence remains high. The Shuxuetong injection, a purified extract of traditional Chinese medicine widely used for thrombus diseases in clinical practice in China, could be a promising agent to prevent stroke recurrence. AIMS: To describe the design of the Shuxuetong injection for prevention of recurrence in acute ischaemic stroke with embolism mechanisms. DESIGN: The Shuxuetong for Prevention of recurrence in Acute Cerebrovascular events with Embolism (SPACE) trial is a multicentre, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group, superiority trial to evaluate the efficacy and safety of Shuxuetong injection in reducing recurrence or silent new ischaemic lesions on patients with acute embolic stroke within 10 days. An estimated 2416 patients with embolic stroke within 72 hours of symptom onset from 80 hospitals will be randomly assigned to one of two groups receiving Shuxuetong injection or placebo injection for 10 days. The primary endpoint is symptomatic or asymptomatic new cerebral infarction within 10 days after randomisation. CONCLUSION: The SPACE Trial will provide valuable evidence for the efficacy and safety of Shuxuetong injection for the prevention of stroke recurrence in patients with imaging-defined embolic stroke. CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION: NCT03090113.