A Novel Swine Model to Evaluate Arterial Vessel Injury after Mechanical Endovascular Thrombectomy

Few animal models have been reported to evaluate and compare mechanical endovascular thrombectomy (MET) devices used to treat human ischemic stroke. These models may contribute to the understanding of arterial injury induced by a MET device and potentially by extrapolation to human intracranial arteries. We have developed a novel swine model for MET that allows visualization of the thrombus/device interaction and characterization of mechanical impact on the vessel wall. Twenty superficial femoral arteries were occluded with radiopaque thrombus, and 20 without thrombus were treated with thrombectomy devices. Acute histopathological changes were evaluated. The swine femoral artery, which is comparable in size to the human middle cerebral artery or basilar artery, may offer a useful animal model for the study of histologic alterations induced by MET.