Baseline characteristics
| Variables | Endovascular therapy (n=77） | Bridging therapy (n=45） | P value |
| Demographics | |||
| Age (years), mean (SD) | 67.5±7.7 | 67.1±7.8 | 0.80 |
| Sex (female), n (%) | 38 (49.4) | 18 (40.0) | 0.32 |
| BMI (kg/m2), mean (SD) | 24.3±2.7 | 25.1±4.6 | 0.23 |
| Risk factors | |||
| Hypertension, n (%) | 53 (68.8) | 24 (53.3) | 0.09 |
| Diabetes, n (%) | 16 (20.8) | 8 (17.8) | 0.69 |
| Dyslipidaemia, n (%) | 3 (3.9) | 4 (8.9) | 0.42 |
| Current smoker, n (%) | 23 (29.9) | 8 (17.8) | 0.14 |
| Current drinker, n (%) | 7 (9.1) | 8 (17.78) | 0.16 |
| Medical history | |||
| Cerebral infarction, n (%) | 14 (18.2) | 8 (17.8) | 0.96 |
| Atrial fibrillation, n (%) | 26 (33.8) | 10 (22.2) | 0.17 |
| Coronary heart disease, n (%) | 12 (15.6) | 11 (24.4) | 0.23 |
| Stroke subtype | |||
| Atherothrombotic, n (%) | 20 (26.0) | 10 (22.2) | 0.85 |
| Cardioembolic, n (%) | 44 (57.1) | 26 (57.8) | |
| Undetermined or other, n (%) | 13 (16.9) | 9 (20.0) | |
| Occlusion site* | |||
| ICA, n (%) | 29 (37.7) | 17 (37.8) | 0.74 |
| M1 segment, n (%) | 47 (61.0) | 28 (62.2) | |
| M2 segment, n (%) | 1 (1.3) | 0 (0) | |
| Interval between stroke onset and arrival | |||
| <4.5 hours, n (%) | 54 (70.1) | 32 (71.1) | 0.91 |
| 4.5–6 hours, n (%) | 23 (29.9) | 13 (28.9) | |
| ASPECTS value based on CT, n (%) | |||
| 0 | 1 (1.3) | 2 (4.4) | 0.19 |
| 1 | 7 (9.1) | 2 (4.4) | |
| 2 | 2 (2.6) | 4 (8.9) | |
| 3 | 37 (48.1) | 16 (35.6) | |
| 4 | 21 (27.3) | 11 (24.4) | |
| 5 | 9 (11.7) | 10 (22.2) | |
| NIHSS score at admission, median (IQR) | 17 (14–20) | 18 (13–20) | 0.83 |
| Median infarct core volume, mean (SD)† | 67.0±40.0 | 61.6±37.6 | 0.52 |
*M1 segment indicates the middle cerebral artery horizontal or sphenoidal segment; M2 segment indicates the middle cerebral artery insular segment.
†The definition of infarct core was an area with an apparent diffusion coefficient ≤620×10−6 mm2/s on MRI or a relative cerebral blood flow below 30% on CT perfusion.
ASPECTS, Alberta Stroke Program Early CT Score; BMI, body mass index; ICA, internal carotid artery; NIHSS, National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale.