China Interventional Stroke Registry: Rationale and Study Design

Background: Angioplasty and stenting have recently become attractive options for cerebral large artery stenosis in China. However, there are limited data on safety and long-term outcomes in Chinese patients having undergone cerebral interventional procedures. To address this need, we set up a common database - the China Interventional Stroke Registry (CISR) - to describe patient characteristics, interventional images, periprocedural complications and long-term clinical outcomes and to determine how adherence to guideline-based treatments in the ‘real world' works in China. Methods: Six medical centers have participated since 2004. They entered into an Internet-based database data on demographics, clinical history and angiography of patients undergoing angioplasty with/without stenting in extracranial arteries (carotid, vertebral and subclavian arteries) and/or intracranial arteries (middle cerebral artery, vertebral artery and basilar artery) in China. CISR is a research-funded project. Results: As of October 2012, we have already collected detailed clinical information on 1,356 patients (age: 63.6 ± 10.2 years, male: 1,084, 79.9%). The overall data quality is good. Site data quality control is supported via detailed monthly feedback reports and quarterly data monitoring meetings. Conclusions: The CISR is the first and the largest registry for angioplasty with/without stents in China. The database will provide the characteristics and outcomes of patients and the situation of adherence to guideline-based treatments under ‘real-world' conditions in China.