Abstract 200: Adherence to Guidelines: Are Ischemic Stroke Patients Receiving Guideline-Concordant Cardiac Stress Testing?

Stroke ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 44 (suppl_1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jason Sico ◽  
Laura J Myers ◽  
Linda S Williams ◽  
Dawn M Bravata

Introduction: Current guidelines recommend screening for coronary heart disease (CHD) using cardiac stress testing for ischemic stroke patients at ‘high risk’ of future cardiac events. However, it is unknown whether high risk stroke patients routinely receive guideline concordant cardiac stress testing. Methods: Medical records were abstracted for a sample of 3965 Veterans from 131 Veterans Health Administration (VHA) facilities who were admitted for a confirmed diagnosis of ischemic stroke (fiscal year 2007). Patients with a history of CHD, receipt of cardiac stress testing within 18-months prior to stroke event, and patients who died during the index hospitalization were excluded (n=1628). Framingham Risk Scores (FRS) were calculated on the basis of: age, gender, systolic blood pressure, blood pressure treatment (yes/no), smoking status (smoker/non-smoker), diabetes, total cholesterol, and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol. FRS ≥20 was used to define patients at “high-risk” of CHD. Administrative data were used to determine whether or not cardiac stress testing was performed within 6-months following discharge from the index stroke hospitalization. Logistic regression was used to assess whether cardiac stress testing was performed more frequently among high risk stroke patients. Results: Among 2337 stroke patients, 28% (n=664) had FRS≥20, and a total of 6% (n=140) had cardiac stress testing within 6-months of discharge. Cardiac stress testing was not more frequently performed among those with ‘high risk’ (5.6%) than those with ‘low risk’ (6.2%) FRS. High risk patients (FRS ≥20) were as likely to have received cardiac stress testing as those with low FRS (OR = 0.90; CI95: 0.61-1.32). Conclusions: Guideline concordant cardiac screening is underutilized among ischemic stroke patients without evidence of previous cardiac stress testing. Patients at the highest risk of future cardiac events were not more likely to receive cardiac stress testing than patients with lower risk. Additional research is required to identify potential barriers to CHD screening, and to determine whether outcomes are improved among patients who received CHD screening.

Stroke ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 46 (suppl_1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jason J Sico ◽  
Fitsum Baye ◽  
Laura E Myers ◽  
John Concato ◽  
Linda S Williams ◽  
...  

Introduction: Guidelines recommend the use of cardiac stress testing to screen for occult coronary heart disease (CHD) among patients with TIA and ischemic stroke who have a ‘high risk’ Framingham Risk score (FRS). It is unclear whether TIA/stroke patients regularly receive guideline-concordant cardiac stress testing. Methods: Administrative data from a sample of 10,923 Veterans from admitted to Veterans Health Administration (VHA) facilities with a TIA or mild stroke in fiscal year 2011 were analyzed. Patients were excluded (n=6947) on the basis of a history of CHD, receipt of cardiac stress testing within 18-months prior to cerebrovascular event, patients who died within 90 days of discharge or were discharged to hospice, and those with missing/unknown race. A FRS was calculated for each patient based on: age, gender, race, systolic blood pressure, blood pressure treatment (yes/no), diabetes, smoking status (smoker/non-smoker), and cholesterol (total and high-density lipoprotein). Patients with an FRS ≥20 were classified as ‘high risk’ of having CHD. Administrative data were used to identify whether cardiac stress testing was performed within 6-months after the cerebrovascular event. Results: Of the 3976 TIA/mild stroke patients, 53.9% (2322) had FRS ≥ 20. A higher proportion of patients with FRS ≥ 20 that received cardiac screening were younger, white men with diabetes and without a history of cancer, compared with patients with a FRS ≥ 20 that did not receive testing. Cardiac stress testing was not performed more frequently for ‘high risk’ (4.5%; 104/2322) versus ‘low/intermediate risk’ (4.7%; 77/1654) FRS (OR = 0.96; CI 95 :071-1.30). Conclusions: Guideline concordant cardiac screening is underutilized among patients with TIA and minor ischemic stroke. Additional research is required to: 1) better understand clinicians’ understanding of and approach to cardiac screening for patients with cerebrovascular disease at high risk for CHD; and 2) determine whether cardiac screening improves post-TIA/stroke outcomes.


2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 192-200
Author(s):  
Jason J. Sico ◽  
Fitsum Baye ◽  
Laura J. Myers ◽  
John Concato ◽  
Jared Ferguson ◽  
...  

BackgroundAmerican Heart Association/American Stroke Association expert consensus guidelines recommend consideration of cardiac stress testing to screen for occult coronary heart disease (CHD) among patients with ischemic stroke/TIA who have a high-risk Framingham Cardiac Risk Score (FCRS). Whether this guideline is being implemented in routine clinical practice, and the association of its implementation with mortality, is less clear.MethodsStudy participants were Veterans with stroke/TIA (n = 11,306) during fiscal year 2011 who presented to a VA Emergency Department or who were admitted. Patients were excluded (n = 6,915) based on prior CHD/angina/chest pain history, receipt of cardiac stress testing within 18 months prior to cerebrovascular event, death within 90 days of discharge, discharge to hospice, transfer to a non-VA acute care facility, or missing/unknown race. FCRS ≥20% was classified as high risk for CHD. ICD-9 and Common Procedural Terminology codes were used to identify receipt of any cardiac stress testing.ResultsAmong 4,391 eligible patients, 62.8% (n = 2,759) had FCRS ≥20%. Cardiac stress testing was performed infrequently and in similar proportion among high-risk (4.5% [123/2,759]) vs low/intermediate-risk (4.4% [72/1,632]) patients (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] 0.77, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.54–1.10). Receipt of stress testing was not associated with reduced 1-year mortality (aOR 0.59, CI 0.26–1.30).ConclusionsIn this observational cohort study of patients with cerebrovascular disease, cardiac screening was relatively uncommon and was not associated with 1-year mortality. Additional work is needed to understand the utility of CHD screening among high-risk patients with cerebrovascular disease.


Stroke ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 47 (suppl_1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jason J Sico ◽  
Fitsum Baye ◽  
Laura J Myers ◽  
John Concato ◽  
Linda S Williams ◽  
...  

Introduction: Guidelines recommend the use of cardiac stress testing to screen for occult coronary heart disease (CHD) among patients with ischemic stroke/TIA who have a ‘high risk’ Framingham Cardiac Risk score (FCRS). It is unclear whether implementation of this guideline confers a mortality benefit among patients with cerebrovascular disease. Hypothesis: We assessed the hypothesis that cardiac stress testing would be associated with lower odds of one-year all-cause mortality. Methods: Administrative data from a sample of 11,306 Veterans admitted to 134 Veterans Health Administration (VHA) facilities with a stroke or TIA in fiscal year 2011 were analyzed. Patients were excluded (n=6915) on the basis of: prior CHD history, receipt of cardiac stress testing within 18-months prior to cerebrovascular event, death within 90 days of discharge, being discharged to hospice, transferred to a non-VHA acute care facility, or missing/unknown race. A FCRS was calculated for each patient; a score of ≥ 20% was classified as ‘high risk’ of having CHD. Administrative data were used to identify whether cardiac stress testing was performed within 90-days after the cerebrovascular event. Logistic regression was used to assess whether cardiac stress testing was associated with one-year all-cause mortality. Results: Of the 4391 eligible patients, 62.8% (2759) had FCRS ≥ 20%, with 4.5% (n=123) of these patients receiving cardiac stress testing within 90 days of discharge. After adjusting for sociodemographic characteristics and medical comorbidities, FCRS ≥ 20% was associated with one-year mortality (aOR=2.18; CI 95 :1.59, 3.00), however, receipt of stress testing was not (aOR=0.59; CI 95 :0.26, 1.30). Conclusion: Cardiac screening did not confer a one-year all-cause mortality benefit among patients with cerebrovascular disease. Additional work is needed to assess outcomes among patients with cerebrovascular disease who are at ‘high risk’ for CHD.


2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mar Carmona-Abellan ◽  
Malwina Trzeciak ◽  
Miriam Recio-Fernandez ◽  
Beatriz Echeveste ◽  
Laura Imaz ◽  
...  

Abstract Background: Both cerebral vascular disorders and cognitive decline increase in incidence with age. The role of cerebral vascular disease and hemodynamic changes in the development of cognitive deficits is controversial. The objective of this study was to assess cardiovascular response during cardiac stress testing in neurologically asymptomatic individuals who developed cognitive impairment several years after the cardiac stress testing.Methods: This is a retrospective cohort study of patients who underwent cardiac stress testing between January 2001 and December 2010. Patients were followed up until May 2015 and we selected those who developed cognitive dysfunction including dementia, mild cognitive impairment and subjective cognitive decline, after the stress test. Heart rate and blood pressure both at rest and at peak exercise and the mean R-R interval at rest were recorded. For each patient who developed cognitive impairment, we selected one matched control who did not show cognitive decline by the end of the follow-up period.Results: From this cohort of 7224 patients, 371 developed cognitive impairment; of these, 186 (124 men) met the inclusion criteria and 186 of the other patients were selected as matched controls. During follow-up, cognitive impairment appeared 6.2 ± 4.7 years after the cardiac stress test. These patients who subsequently developed cognitive impairment had significantly lower at-rest systolic, diastolic and mean blood pressure than controls (p<0.05). Further, compared with controls, their maximum heart rate was significantly higher at peak exercise and both systolic and diastolic blood pressures increased significantly more during exercise. Conclusion: The results from this study suggest that differences in cardiovascular response to stress are present in the preclinical phase of cognitive decline, serving as a potential risk factor for cognitive impairment. These findings challenge the potential use of blood pressure and heart rate variability at rest and during cardiac stress assessment as a risk factor for cognitive impairment.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 385
Author(s):  
Mar Carmona-Abellan ◽  
Malwina Trzeciak ◽  
Miriam Recio Fernández ◽  
Beatriz Echeveste ◽  
Laura Imaz ◽  
...  

(1) Background: Both cerebral vascular disorders and cognitive decline increase in incidence with age. The role of cerebral vascular disease and hemodynamic changes in the development of cognitive deficits is controversial. The objective of this study was to assess the cardiovascular response during cardiac stress testing in neurologically asymptomatic individuals who developed cognitive impairment several years after previous cardiac stress testing. (2) Methods: This was a retrospective cohort study of patients who underwent cardiac stress testing between January 2001 and December 2010. Patients were followed up until May 2015, and we selected those who developed cognitive dysfunction including dementia, mild cognitive impairment, and subjective cognitive decline, after the stress test. Heart rate and blood pressure both at rest and at peak exercise, and the mean R-R interval at rest were recorded. For each patient who developed cognitive impairment, we selected one matched control who did not show cognitive decline by the end of the follow-up period. (3) Results: From the cohort of 7224 patients, 371 developed cognitive impairment; of these, 186 (124 men) met the inclusion criteria, and 186 of the other patients were selected as matched controls. During follow-up, cognitive impairment appeared 6.2 ± 4.7 years after the cardiac stress test. These patients who had subsequently developed cognitive impairment had significantly lower at-rest systolic, diastolic, and mean blood pressure than controls (p < 0.05). Further, compared with controls, their maximum heart rate was significantly higher at peak exercise. (4) Conclusion: The results from this study suggest that differences in cardiovascular response to stress might be present in individuals who develop cognitive decline. These findings challenge the possibility of assessing blood pressure and heart rate variability at rest and during cardiac stress as potential risk factors associated with cognitive impairment.


2013 ◽  
Vol 27 (2) ◽  
pp. 177-183 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hyuk Sung Kwon ◽  
Young-Hyo Lim ◽  
Hyun Young Kim ◽  
Hee-Tae Kim ◽  
Hyung-Min Kwon ◽  
...  

2015 ◽  
Vol 233 (1) ◽  
pp. 19-37 ◽  
Author(s):  
Swapnil Gupta ◽  
Mohini Ranganathan ◽  
Deepak Cyril D’Souza

PLoS ONE ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. e0144260 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wei Wu ◽  
Xiaochuan Huo ◽  
Xingquan Zhao ◽  
Xiaoling Liao ◽  
Chunjuan Wang ◽  
...  

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