Prevalence and structure of calls from the Moscow emergency medical team to children with stroke

Abstract

In recent years, the number of diagnosed cases of stroke in children and adolescents has significantly increased. Purpose: to study the prevalence and structure of calls from emergency medical teams (EMS) to children and adolescents with a preliminary diagnosis of stroke, taking into account age, gender and seasonality in Moscow. Objectives: to analyse calls from emergency medical services teams in Moscow to children and adolescents, to study the prevalence of childhood stroke. To establish the structure of childhood strokes and the most common types of stroke. To track the dynamics of average monthly indicators of EMS calls to pediatric patients with a preliminary diagnosis of stroke and to clarify the patterns specific to the prevalence of calls to EMS teams during the year. Materials and methods: there was carried out an analysis of the prevalence and structure of calls from emergency medical teams to patients with a preliminary diagnosis of acute cerebrovascular accident among the child population of Moscow. The distribution of cases of acute cerebrovascular accident was analysed depending on the gender and age of the child, and types of stroke. Results of the study: Age, gender and seasonal characteristics, prevalence and structure of nosological forms and types of stroke were identified. It was found that stroke is more common in children aged 7 to 15 years — 1 453 cases (57%). In 73.5% of cases, the visiting medical staff of the EMS diagnosed a transient ischemic attack, in 19.3% — a stroke not specified as a cerebral hemorrhage or infarction, in 4.4% — a subarachnoid hemorrhage, in 1.7% — a hemorrhagic stroke, and in 1.1% — cerebral infarction. An increase in the number of calls is observed from September to April (77.8% of all calls from emergency medical services teams).