Assessment of onset-to-door time in acute ischemic stroke and factors associated with delay at a tertiary care center in South India.

Objectives: Intravenous thrombolysis is an effective treatment of acute ischemic stroke but has a narrow therapeutic time window of 3-4.5 h. Pre-hospital delay is a major barrier to patients becoming eligible for thrombolysis. This single-center study assessed the factors causing longer onset-to-door (OTD) time to identify measures that will help decrease the delay.

Materials and methods: Patients with acute ischemic stroke presenting to the emergency department from August to October 2022 were included in the study. The data were collected using a structured questionnaire and was completed by interviewing the patient or the caregivers. Patients were classified as early and late arrivers with the cutoff being 3.5 h. We then analyzed the relationship between early arrival and demographic factors, clinical factors, patient response factors, and logistic factors.

Results: Our study consisted of 153 patients. The average OTD time was 674.33 ± 812.713 min (median: 300; interquartile range: 151-885). The pre-hospital delay was present in 66% of patients. 16.9% of patients came beyond 24 h. In the multivariate analysis, the odds of early arrival were higher among patients who perceived their symptoms as serious (odds ratio [OR]: 18.801; confidence interval [CI]: 3.728-94.803) and lower among patients who experienced a delay in reaching due to traffic (OR: 0.085; CI: 0.008-0.873). Lack of knowledge about stroke centers among both patients and health professionals also contributed to longer OTD times. Out of 52 early arrivers, 24 received thrombolytic therapy after excluding wake-up strokes and contraindications.

Conclusion: Pre-hospital delay continues to stand in the way of patients receiving thrombolysis. Comprehensive stroke education, increasing awareness regarding stroke centers, and promoting ambulance services are some of the interventions which could help tackle the issue.