Table 1.

Pathophysiology and therapeutic targets of ischemic stroke in the acute, subacute, and chronic phases. BBB, blood-brain barrier; ROS, reactive oxygen species.

	Acute Phase of Stroke	Subacute Phase of Stroke	Chronic Phase of Stroke
Time course	Minutes to days	Days to weeks	Weeks to mouths
Pathophysiological mechanisms	Infiltration of peripheral immune cells; activation of resident glial cells; disturbance of ionic homeostasis; oxidative stress; BBB destruction; mitochondrial dysfunction; DNA damage	Amplification of immune responses; increased ROS production; cell edema and ion imbalances	Decrease in excitotoxicity; protective inflammatory response
		Axonal sprouting, dendrite remodeling; neurogenesis, angiogenesis; increased levels of growth factors
Consequences	Cell injury or death	Onset of neuroplasticity	Tissue repair
Therapeutic targets	Neuroprotection; reducing reperfusion injury	Functional rehabilitation