Treatment of the Acute Embolic Event

The goals of this treatment are minimization of brain ischemic injury caused by the

embolus and prevention of acute recurrent embolism. Strategies for accomplishing this

fall into four broad categories: (i) reperfusion of the brain region rendered ischemic by

the embolus, (ii) acute anticoagulation to prevent propagation and further embolization

of thromboemboli, (iii) making the brain more resistant to ischemia, allowing survival

of nerve cells despite ischemia, and (iv) managing complications of embolic infarction,

such as brain edema and brain hemorrhage.