Interestingly, in our study, VWF antigen levels showed an increase after thrombolysis only in patients with more severe stroke (NIHSS 6–16 and NIHSS >16 on admission), while in the group of patients with less severe stroke (NIHSS 0–5) this elevation was not seen, suggesting that at least in part endothelial dysfunction is likely to contribute to this finding. This evidence concerns the gene VWF and endothelial dysfunction.