Enhanced Control of Hypertension and Thrombolysis Stroke Study (ENCHANTED)

Summary

ENCHANTED is an independent, investigator initiated, international collaborative, quasi-factorial randomised controlled trial involving a package of 2 linked comparative randomised treatment arms, which aims to address 4 key questions in patients eligible for thrombolysis in the acute phase of ischaemic stroke. (1) Does low-dose (0.6 mg/kg) intravenous (i.v.) recombinant tissue plasminogen activator (rtPA) provide equivalent benefits compared to standard-dose (0.9 mg/kg) rtPA? (2) Does intensive blood pressure (BP) lowering (130-140 mmHg systolic target) improve outcomes compared to the current guideline recommended level of BP control (180 mmHg systolic target)? (3) Does low-dose (0.6 mg/kg) intravenous (i.v.) recombinant tissue plasminogen activator (rtPA) reduce the risk of symptomatic intracerebral haemorrhage (sICH)? (4) Does the addition of intensive BP lowering to thrombolysis with rtPA reduce the risk of any intracerebral haemorrhage (ICH)?

The rtPA dose arm of the study addressing questions (1) and (3) concluded with a publication of the results in May 2016. The BP intensity arm of the study addressing questions (2) and (4) concluded with a publication of the results in February 2019.

Conditions

• Ischemic Stroke
• High Blood Pressure

Interventions

DRUG

Low-dose rtPA

Patients allocated to low-dose will receive 0.6 mg/kg (maximum of 60 mg) i.v. (15% bolus \[maximum bolus dose of 9mg\] and 85% infusion over 60 mins) recombinant tissue plasminogen activator (rtPA).

DRUG

Standard-dose rtPA

Patients allocated to standard-dose will receive 0.9 mg/kg (maximum of 90 mg) i.v. (10% bolus and 90% infusion over 60 mins) rtPA.

OTHER

Intensive blood pressure (BP) lowering

Intensive blood pressure (BP) lowering to a target systolic BP range 130-140 mmHg within one hour and to maintain this level for at least 72 hours (or until hospital discharge or death if this should occur earlier). A standardised i.v. BP lowering regimen using locally available and approved i.v. BP lowering agents will be used, commenced in the emergency department and later in a high dependency area (e.g. acute stroke or neurointensive care unit) as is usual for patients receiving rtPA. The trial is an assessment of BP lowering management strategies, using routinely available drugs. There is some flexibility in the use of particular BP lowering agents to achieve BP targets.

OTHER

BP management policies

Patients allocated to the control group will receive management of BP that is based on a standard guideline, as published by the AHA. For this group, the attending clinician may consider commencing BP treatment if the systolic level is greater than 180 mmHg, however and the first line treatment will be oral (including nasogastric if required) and/or transdermal routes. Should control of systolic BP not be achieved via these routes, i.v. treatment may be started until the target systolic BP of 180 mmHg is achieved. The trial is an assessment of BP lowering management strategies, using routinely available drugs. There is some flexibility in the use of particular BP lowering agents to achieve BP targets.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• National Health and Medical Research Council, Australia

  collaborator OTHER

• The Stroke Association, United Kingdom

  collaborator OTHER

• Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico

  collaborator OTHER_GOV

• Takeda

  collaborator INDUSTRY

• The George Institute

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Craig S Anderson, MD · The George Institute

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

SINGLE

Model

FACTORIAL

Eligibility

Min Age

18 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2012-03-31

Primary Completion

2018-08-31

Completion

2018-08-31

Countries

• Australia

Study Locations