October 29, 2011 is World Stroke Day. The relentless statistics show that one in six people worldwide suffers from stroke, one in six seconds dies from stroke, and one in six seconds is permanently disabled by stroke. Stroke has become the number one cause of death in China, with ischemic stroke (or “cerebral infarction”, “stroke”) accounting for about 65% of strokes, usually manifesting as sudden onset of salivation, hemiplegia, speech disorders, swallowing difficulties, and even unconsciousness. It is usually characterized by sudden onset of salivation, hemiplegia, difficulty in speech, swallowing and even unconsciousness. There are about 7 million stroke patients in China, and 70% of them have severe functional disability, which seriously affects the family and social life and brings a heavy burden to the country; moreover, the death and disease burden of stroke in China has far exceeded that of ischemic heart disease. Realistic data reflect the high morbidity, mortality, disability and recurrence rates of stroke, but stroke is a treatable and preventable disease. For example, the most effective therapeutic agent, recombinant tissue-type fibrinogen activator (rt-PA), is applied intravenously within 4.5 hours after the onset of an infarction to dissolve the clot and recanalize the blood vessel. However, there is a strict time limit for the use of this potent drug, which can only be used within 4.5 hours of the onset of the disease, and the earlier the patient receives thrombolytic therapy after the onset of the disease, the more effective it is, because 1.9 million nerve cells die every minute after cerebral infarction. Therefore, patients or their family members should seek medical attention at the first time after discovering the aforementioned symptoms of suspected cerebral infarction, and should not have the mentality of “wait and see”, because if they miss this time window, they will miss the opportunity of revascularization. Effective rt-PA therapy also carries certain risks, which can increase the risk of intracranial and systemic bleeding. Therefore, whether intravenous thrombolytic therapy or arterial thrombolysis is to be performed, a detailed scientific evaluation of the patient must be performed by a medical professional before deciding whether to proceed.