A new systematic review and meta-analysis by an international group of researchers has found giving a blood thinning drug (thrombolysis) before treatment to remove a clot from the brain—known as thrombectomy procedure—to stroke patients, improved mortality rates at 90 days, compared with just thrombectomy procedure alone. Mechanical thrombectomy is an effective treatment for patients with an acute stroke caused by a clot (ischemic stroke) from basilar artery occlusion, which occurs when the basilar artery, the main artery at the back portion of the brain, is blocked. Administering a bridging blood thinning drug before removing a clot is still recommended for...