Skip to main content
. 2025 Aug 21;12:1647313. doi: 10.3389/fcvm.2025.1647313

Figure 1.

Flowchart illustrating the selection process for a study on patients undergoing c-TTE, c-TCD, TEE, and TTE examinations. Out of 546 patients, 103 were excluded due to absence of PFO or being under 18 years old. Of 443 remaining, 99 were excluded for specific conditions such as atrial fibrillation and major organ failure. The remaining 344 underwent evaluations, including brain MRI/CT, vascular imaging, and cardiac evaluations. The participants were categorized into three groups: 149 with no stroke, 59 with cryptogenic stroke, and 136 with non-cryptogenic stroke, further divided by age groups below and above 60 years.

Flowchart of study population selection (TEE, transesophageal echocardiography; c-TCD, contrast-enhanced transcranial Doppler; c-TTE, contrast-enhanced transthoracic echocardiography; TTE, transthoracic echocardiography; MRI, magnetic resonance imaging; CT, computed tomography; CTA, computed tomography angiography; MRA, magnetic resonance angiography; PFO, patent foramen ovale).