Impact of prehospital comprehensive stroke center vs. primary stroke center triage protocol on outcome of patients with spontaneous intracerebral hemorrhage
Tracey H Fan , Molly Lawrence , Elena Badillo Goicoechea , Angela Wick , Shyam Prabhakaran
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引用次数: 0
Abstract
Purpose
While prehospital triage protocols for suspected large vessel occlusion (LVO) improve ischemic stroke outcomes, their impact in spontaneous intracerebral hemorrhage (sICH) remain uncertain. We evaluated whether a regional LVO-focused emergency medical service (EMS) transport protocol affected time-based process outcomes and clinical outcomes in sICH patients.
Method
We conducted a multicenter pre-post implementation retrospective cohort study using the Get-With-The-Guidelines-Stroke database in Chicago (April 2017–January 2020). Included were EMS-transported sICH patients arriving ≤6 hours from last known normal at 8 comprehensive stroke centers (CSCs) and 15 primary stroke centers (PSCs). In September 2018, EMS implemented the 3-Item Stroke Scale (3I-SS) to triage suspected LVO stroke patients; those scoring ≥4 were routed to a CSC bypassing PSC. Primary outcome was favorable discharge disposition (home/acute rehabilitation). Secondary outcomes included in-hospital mortality, good neurologic outcome (independent ambulation) at discharge and time based process outcomes (door-to-CT, symptom-to-arrival, symptom-to-CT). Interrupted time series (ITS) analysis assessed changes while accounting for temporal trends.
Findings
Among 303 sICH patients (111 pre-, 192 post-implementation), there was no difference in favorable discharge disposition (58% vs. 64%, p=0.3), in-hospital mortality (12% vs. 9%, p=0.4) or good neurologic outcomes (13% vs. 19%, p=0.4) between pre-post implementation periods for both unadjusted or ITS analyses. Time based process outcomes showed no significant changes in unadjusted or ITS analyses. The protocol also did not impact CSC admission and inter-hospital transfer rates in ITS analyses.
Discussion/Conclusion
Implementation of an LVO-focused EMS transport protocol did not improve clinical outcomes or time-based process outcomes among sICH patients, nor did it influence CSC admission or transfer rates. These findings suggest that while beneficial for ischemic stroke care, LVO triage protocols may not confer the same advantages for sICH patients and may require tailored approaches for this population.
期刊介绍:
The Journal of Stroke & Cerebrovascular Diseases publishes original papers on basic and clinical science related to the fields of stroke and cerebrovascular diseases. The Journal also features review articles, controversies, methods and technical notes, selected case reports and other original articles of special nature. Its editorial mission is to focus on prevention and repair of cerebrovascular disease. Clinical papers emphasize medical and surgical aspects of stroke, clinical trials and design, epidemiology, stroke care delivery systems and outcomes, imaging sciences and rehabilitation of stroke. The Journal will be of special interest to specialists involved in caring for patients with cerebrovascular disease, including neurologists, neurosurgeons and cardiologists.