EPO and ischemic stroke: In 2002, Ehrenreich et al. reported that rhEPO given (iv, 3.3 × 104 IU/50 ml/30 min) once daily for the first 3 days after ischemic stroke in 53 patients could penetrate to the MCA territory; the EPO level in the CSF could increase to 60–100 times compared to the untreated patients (Ehrenreich et al., 2002).