WELCOME TO
iCure Stroke

Dear Colleagues,

2020 threw us a curve ball in many ways. We were extremely fortunate to see iCureStroke come to life with close to 400 registered participants from 37 countries weeks before the tumultuous covid shutdown began. We are proud of the feedback we received on this first edition, especially regarding the relevance of content in real-life stroke practice. We received immense encouragement to further build on this dedicated platform of training and exchange. We believe that our motto of "Bridging Therapies and Communities" is more relevant now than ever before.

Challenges of Modern Stroke Treatment…in the covid era!

In our first edition, we focused on indications for mechanical thrombectomy, techniques, decision making, the notion of "customized care” in stroke intervention, pre and intra-hospital organization, as well as the creation of a "stroke survival chain".

Then, COV19 arrived and changed the world as we knew it. The pandemic had a deep impact on all aspects of life, but also, specifically on ischemic stroke:

• At the beginning of the pandemic, many of us saw a significant drop in the number of cases making it to the hospital.
• Workflows were modified due to several factors:
  • patients coming in later than usual and in more severe condition,
  • difficulties in treatment management and execution in an environment where protecting ourselves, our teams and other patients from the virus became a priority,
  • and in some places, regional covid-specific organization.
• Finally, stroke outcomes risk being impacted due to the virus possibly directly affecting stroke pathogenesis or simply as a by-product of patients arriving in more severe condition and being treated more slowly than usual.

The status quo has been challenged. Questioning what we take for granted and exchanging best practices has never been this primordial.

Mastering Complexity through Simplification

In this unprecedented context, iCureStroke will fix its goal as defining the essential focus in ischemic stroke service. We aim to provide a simple, practical approach and cutting-edge educational content, for attendees to go back with easily applicable take-home messages.

We decided to re-iterate iCureStroke as a "traditional" on-site meeting in 2021 because we believe that a format with real - as opposed to virtual - contact is what impacts intense learning. Debates are difficult, if not impossible to stimulate during webinars. We believe that emulation of ideas and generation of consensus is possible only when inspired individuals exchange ideas in face-to-face discussions. Hence, we will organize a real event, taking all protective measures that may be relevant at the time the meeting will be taking place.

We look forward to meeting you again in Istanbul in 08-10 March 2021.