Thrombolysis in young adults.

Obstacles to thrombolytic treatment could be unique in young stroke patients and identifying and addressing them would potentially enhance outcomes. However, it has not been well studied how age affects the time to presentation, diagnosis or treatment of acute strokes. Although studies suggest that younger patients may be more aware of stroke symptoms and signs than older ones, they may be less likely to use emergency medical services. Importantly, for strokes of similar severity, younger patients have more favorable outcomes with thrombolysis than older patients. On the other hand, young patients who experience extensive middle cerebral artery strokes are more likely to develop fatal brain edema than older patients. Current data support the use of thrombolytics for all ischemic stroke etiologies, including entities such as cervical artery dissection that are more common in young patients.