Abstract: Objective   To compare the efficacy and safety of aspiration thrombectomy and thrombectomy combined with aspiration and stent retriever for the treatment of anterior circulation cerebral embolism.    Methods   Patients with anterior circulation cerebral embolism and treated with emergency thrombectomy surgery at Guangzhou Panyu Central Hospital from January 2020 to June 2022 were enrolled in this study. They were divided into two groups based on the thrombectomy method received: an aspiration thrombectomy group (40 cases) and a thrombectomy combined with aspiration and stent retriever group (64 cases). The NIHSS score, good prognosis rate (mRS score ≤ 2), post-thrombectomy vessel recanalization rate (mTICI score ≥ 2b), and perioperative complication rate were compared between the two groups.    Results    The change of NIHSS score from preoperative to postoperative, the good prognosis rate at the time of discharge and at 90 days after discharge,  the thrombectomy group were significantly better than those in the thrombectomy with combined aspiration and stent retriever group. There were no significant differences in the rates of successful vessel recanalization and adverse events between the two groups.    Conclusions   Compared with the thrombectomy combined with aspiration and stent retriever, aspiration thrombectomy may lead to better improvement in neurological function deficits and good prognosis rates for patients with anterior circulation cerebral embolism. There is no significant difference in the rates of successful vessel recanalization and perioperative complications between the two approaches.

Key words: Aspiration thrombectomy; ,  , Thrombectomy with combined aspiration and stent retriever, Anterior circulation; ,  ,  Cerebral embolism