Abstract WP339: Validation of the Fast-ed Scale Use by Paramedics in a Mobile Stroke Unit

Stroke ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 51 (Suppl_1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Diogo C Haussen ◽  
Raul G Nogueira ◽  
Nirav Bhatt ◽  
Carol Flemming ◽  
Nicolas Bianchi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Stroke Unit ◽  
Hospital Setting ◽  
Final Diagnosis ◽  
Large Vessel Occlusion ◽  
Vessel Occlusion ◽  
Hospital Arrival ◽  
Mobile Stroke Unit ◽  
Standard Operating ◽  
Intravenous Alteplase ◽  
Cerebrovascular Imaging

Introduction: FAST-ED scale is a helpful tool to triage stroke patients in the field. However, data on the accuracy of the scale in the pre-hospital setting is lacking. We aim to validate the use of FAST-ED by paramedics in a mobile stroke unit (MSU) covering a metropolis. Methods: As part of standard operating MSU procedures, paramedics clinically evaluated patients. If the event characterized a stroke alert, the FAST-ED score was determined by the paramedic (in-person) upon patient contact, and independently by a vascular neurologist (telemedicine) immediately after the paramedic evaluation. An MSU nurse determined the NIHSS. This will allow testing of the inter-rater agreement of the FAST-ED scoring performance between on-site pre-hospital providers and remotely located vascular neurologists. Results: In the first 13 months of the MSU’s activity 193 stroke-alert patients were evaluated. 103 (53%) patients had a final diagnosis of stroke/TIA (75/28, respectively), 21 (11%) intracranial hemorrhage, and 69 (36%) were considered stroke mimics. 28 (14%) patients received intravenous alteplase. In the first 48 patients, FAST-ED was only scored by the paramedic and in 145 patients by both the physician and paramedic. FAST-ED scores matched perfectly amongst paramedics and physicians in 77 (53%) instances, while there was only 1-point difference in 51 (35%), 2-point difference in 10 (6%) and 3-point difference in two. Correlation between physician and paramedic FAST-ED scores was highly positive (rho 0.898; 2-sided p<0.001), as well as the correlation between physicians FAST-ED score and NIHSS (rho 0.853; 2-sided p<0.001). When the physician recorded FAST-ED score≥3 (n=62), the paramedics also scored FAST-ED≥3 in the vast majority of instances (n=55; 89%). After hospital arrival, cerebrovascular imaging was deemed necessary and performed in 144 patients within 24 hours of arrival. A visible large vessel occlusion was identified in 30 patients; 18 occlusions were identified with a FAST-ED≥3 while 12 were missed (10/12 had NIHSS≤5). Conclusion: The correlation of the FAST-ED scoring between vascular neurologists and paramedics was highly positive, indicating that FAST-ED is accurately and reliably utilized by paramedics in the pre-hospital setting.

scholarly journals Reliability of Field Assessment Stroke Triage for Emergency Destination Scale Use by Paramedics: Mobile Stroke Unit First-Year Experience

Stroke ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nirav R. Bhatt ◽  
Michael R. Frankel ◽  
Raul G. Nogueira ◽  
Carol Fleming ◽  
Nicolas A. Bianchi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Stroke Unit ◽  
Intraclass Correlation ◽  
Final Diagnosis ◽  
Prehospital Setting ◽  
First Year Experience ◽  
First Year ◽  
Vessel Occlusion ◽  
Field Assessment ◽  
Mobile Stroke Unit ◽  
Ischemic Attack

Background and Purpose: Field Assessment Stroke Triage for Emergency Destination (FAST-ED) scale is a helpful tool to triage patients with stroke in the field. However, data on its reliability in the prehospital setting are lacking. We aim to test the reliability of FAST-ED scale when used by paramedics in a mobile stroke unit covering a metropolitan area. Methods: As part of standard operating mobile stroke unit procedures, paramedics initially evaluated patients. If the event characterized a stroke alert, the FAST-ED score was determined by the paramedic upon patient contact (in-person) and then independently by a vascular neurologist (VN) immediately after paramedic evaluation (remotely/telemedicine). This allowed testing of the interrater agreement of the FAST-ED scoring performance between on-site prehospital providers and remotely located VN. Results: Of a total of 238 patients transported in the first 15 months of the mobile stroke unit’s activity, 173 were included in this study. Median age was 63 (interquartile range, 55.5–75) years and 52.6% were females. A final diagnosis of ischemic stroke was made in 71 (41%), transient ischemic attack in 26 (15%), intracranial hemorrhage in 15 (9%), whereas 61 (35%) patients were stroke mimics. The FAST-ED scores matched perfectly among paramedics and VN in 97 (56%) instances, while there was 0 to 1-point difference in 158 (91.3%), 0 to 2-point difference in 171 (98.8%), and 3 or more point difference in 2 (1.1%) patients. The intraclass correlation between VN and paramedic FAST-ED scores showed excellent reliability, intraclass correlation coefficient 0.94 (95% CI, 0.92–0.96; P <0.001). When VN recorded FAST-ED score ≥3, paramedics also scored FAST-ED≥3 in majority of instances (63/71 patients; 87.5%). A large vessel occlusion was identified in 16 (9.2%) patients; 13 occlusions were identified with a FAST-ED≥3 while 3 were missed. All of the latter patients had National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale score ≤5. Conclusions: We demonstrate excellent reliability of FAST-ED scale performed by paramedics when compared with VN, indicating that it can be accurately performed by paramedics in the prehospital setting.

scholarly journals Stroke Care During the First and the Second Waves of the COVID-19 Pandemic in a Community Hospital

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Piotr Sobolewski ◽  
Wiktor Szczuchniak ◽  
Danuta Grzesiak-Witek ◽  
Jacek Wilczyński ◽  
Karol Paciura ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Retrospective Study ◽  
Stroke Unit ◽  
Community Hospital ◽  
Intravenous Thrombolysis ◽  
Stroke Care ◽  
Large Vessel Occlusion ◽  
Vessel Occlusion ◽  
Endovascular Thrombectomy ◽  
Staff Members ◽  
Second Wave

Objective: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infection may alter a stroke course; thus, we compared stroke course during subsequent pandemic waves in a stroke unit (SU) from a hospital located in a rural area.Methods: A retrospective study included all patients consecutively admitted to the SU between March 15 and May 31, 2020 (“first wave”), and between September 15 and November 30, 2020 (“second wave”). We compared demographic and clinical data, treatments, and outcomes of patients between the first and the second waves of the pandemic and between subjects with and without COVID-19.Results: During the “first wave,” 1.4% of 71 patients were hospitalized due to stroke/TIA, and 41.8% of 91 during the “second wave” were infected with SARS-CoV-2 (p &lt; 0.001). During the “second wave,” more SU staff members were infected with COVID-19 than during the “first wave” (45.6 vs. 8.7%, p &lt; 0.001). Nevertheless, more patients underwent intravenous thrombolysis (26.4 vs. 9.9%, p &lt; 0.008) and endovascular thrombectomy (5.3 vs. 0.0%, p &lt; 0.001) during the second than the first wave. Large vessel occlusion (LVO) (OR 8.74; 95% CI 1.60–47.82; p = 0.012) and higher 30-day mortality (OR 6.01; 95% CI 1.04–34.78; p = 0.045) were associated with patients infected with COVID-19. No differences regarding proportions between ischemic and hemorrhagic strokes and TIAs between both waves or subgroups with and without COVID-19 existed.Conclusion: Despite the greater COVID-19 infection rate among both SU patients and staff during the “second wave” of the pandemic, a higher percentage of reperfusion procedures has been performed then. COVID-19 infection was associated with a higher rate of the LVO and 30-day mortality.

Abstract WP72: Early Experience on Intravenous Tissue Plasminogen Activator Delivery in Mobile Stroke Unit Patients with Stroke Mimics

Stroke ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 48 (suppl_1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Lila E Sheikhi ◽  
Stacey Winners ◽  
Pravin George ◽  
Andrew Russman ◽  
Zeshaun Khawaja ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Plasminogen Activator ◽  
Tissue Plasminogen Activator ◽  
Stroke Unit ◽  
Early Experience ◽  
Final Diagnosis ◽  
Stroke Mimics ◽  
Intravenous Tissue Plasminogen Activator ◽  
Mobile Stroke Unit ◽  
Tissue Plasminogen ◽  
Iv Tpa

Background: A mobile stroke unit (MSU) allows for early delivery for intravenous tissue plasminogen activator (IV-tPA). A proportion of IV-tPA treated patients may turn out to be stroke mimics. We evaluated the rate and complications seen in stroke mimics treated with tPA from our early experience on MSU. Methods: Retrospective review of patients treated with IV-tPA on the MSU from 2014 to 2016. Charts were reviewed for confirmed strokes by imaging (MRI or CT) and hemorrhagic transformation. Stroke mimics were defined as those without imaging evidence of infarction and a final diagnosis which was not suspected to be stroke. Results: Among 62 patients treated with IV-tPA, 14 (28.6%) had a final diagnosis consistent with a stroke mimics. The majority of these occurred in the first year of the MSU program. Most common mimics included conversion disorder (n=5) and seizures (n=5). While the last known well to IV-tPA times were similar, the MSU door-to-needle time was significantly longer in stroke mimics (38 vs 31 minutes, p = 0.03). No intracerebral hemorrhages or other IV-tPA related complications were identified in the stroke mimics group. Conclusions: In our early experience with MSU, treatment of stroke mimics occurred without IV-tPA related complications. This does not appear to be due to rushed decision making.

Abstract WP277: Race Score is Scalable to Other Ems Systems; A Sensitivity Analysis

Stroke ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 48 (suppl_1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sharjeel Panjwani ◽  
Julie Shawver ◽  
Syed F Zaidi ◽  
Mouhammad A Jumaa
Keyword(s):  
Hospital Setting ◽  
Arterial Occlusion ◽  
Final Diagnosis ◽  
Medical Emergency ◽  
Stroke Severity ◽  
Vessel Occlusion ◽  
Spanish Study ◽  
Back Ground ◽  
Stroke Mimic ◽  
Lucas County

Back Ground: Rapid Arterial Occlusion Evaluation Scale (RACE) was first instituted in Barcelona and described in 2014 to successfully assess stroke severity and identify patients with acute stroke with large vessel occlusion (LVO) at pre-hospital setting by medical emergency technicians. Objective: We instituted Rapid Arterial Occlusion Evaluation Scale (RACE) hospital bypass protocol (RA) in Lucas county, Ohio since July 2015. Our aim in this study is to evaluate the sensitivity of our RACE protocol in identifying cerebro-vascular accidents and furthermore to identify ischemic CVAs from the cohort. Method: All county EMS personnel (N=464) underwent training in the Rapid Arterial Occlusion Evaluation (RACE) score. The RACE Alert (RA) protocol, whereby patients with stroke symptoms, who were last seen normal less than 12 hours and had a RACE score ≥5 were taken to a facility that has neuro-interventional capacity, was implemented in July 2015. An IRB approved prospective DB was maintained during that period. Patient’s stroke characteristics, type of acute treatment and final diagnosis on discharge were reviewed for the purpose of this abstract. Our results were comparable to the Spanish study done in Barcelona in 2014. Results: Between Jul 2016-Jun 2016 186 RAs were activated. The discharge diagnoses included ischemic stroke N=91 (49%), ICH N=26 (14%) and TIA N=17(9%). The rate of stroke mimic was N=52 (28%) of the total RACE alerts. These included seizures (12%), metabolic encephalotpathy (12%) and others including sepsis and migraines. Of the patients presenting as RA, 33% underwent IV tPA treatment ± mechanical thrombectomy. Conclusion: Results from our prospective county wide data is comparable to prior studies. RACE score may be scalable to other EMS systems to triage potential LVOs for direct transfer to centers with interventional capabilities.

Abstract TMP64: Single Stroke Symptoms Cannot Predict Large Vessel Occlusion in Patients With Acute Ischemic Stroke With a High Reliability

Stroke ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 48 (suppl_1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jon Schrock ◽  
Ashley Markowski
Keyword(s):  
Ischemic Stroke ◽  
Acute Ischemic Stroke ◽  
Roc Curve ◽  
Clinical Symptoms ◽  
High Reliability ◽  
Hospital Setting ◽  
Large Vessel ◽  
Large Vessel Occlusion ◽  
Roc Curve Analysis ◽  
Vessel Occlusion

Background: Identification of acute ischemic stroke patients (AIS) with large vessel occlusion (LVO) in the pre-hospital setting is paramount now that endovascular treatment has become the standard of care. Correctly identifying this AIS population will allow transport to appropriate stroke centers with endovascular stroke capabilities. Objectives: We choose to evaluate single symptoms which, if present, might signify an ischemic stroke with a LVO. We tested if the following stroke symptoms including hemiplegia, severe dysarthria, neglect, eye deviation were associated with a LVO. Our hypothesis is that the use of these selected single or multiple NIHSS symptoms will not result in a ROC of > 0.9 rendering it effective in LVO diagnosis. Methods: A retrospective cohort review was conducted of 551 AIS patients who presented to the emergency department over a 77 month period. Subject demographics clinical symptoms, and other pertinent information were collected from the medical record. The following symptoms at ED presentation were evaluated with univariate and multivariate regression and ROC curve analysis; hemiplegia (of arm and leg), dysarthria (severe), neglect, and eye deviation. Results: Out of the 551 patients, 220 (40%) had a moderate stroke (NIHSS >9) while 143 (26%) had a severe stroke (NIHSS>14) and 49% were male. The median NIHSS was 7 (IQR 4-15) and 228 (41%) had LVO on CTA. The odds ratio and area under the ROC curve for hemiplegia, severe dysarthria, neglect, and eye deviation were respectively OR 3.2 (2.2- 4.5), 3.2 (2.2- 4.6), 5.5 (3.4- 8.9), 7.7 (4.6- 13.1) and area under the ROC 0.63, 0.64, 0.63, and 0.64 respectively. The results of multivariate analysis were slightly better with an ROC of 0.72. Conclusions: Singular stroke symptoms do not have the diagnostic power to predict which patient with AIS will have a LVO. While they have positive odds ratios, the ROC analysis suggests that individually or in combination, they are not accurate enough to determine the presence of LVO.

scholarly journals Mobile Stroke Unit Computed Tomography Angiography Substantially Shortens Door-to-Puncture Time

Stroke ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 51 (5) ◽  
pp. 1613-1615 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexandra L. Czap ◽  
Noopur Singh ◽  
Ritvij Bowry ◽  
Amanda Jagolino-Cole ◽  
Stephanie A. Parker ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Computed Tomography ◽  
Computed Tomography Angiography ◽  
Stroke Unit ◽  
Interquartile Range ◽  
National Institutes Of Health ◽  
Unique Identifier ◽  
Vessel Occlusion ◽  
Endovascular Thrombectomy ◽  
Unit Management ◽  
Mobile Stroke Unit

Background and Purpose— Endovascular thrombectomy (ET) door-to-puncture time (DTPT) is a modifiable metric. One of the most important, yet time-consuming steps, is documentation of large vessel occlusion by computed tomography angiography (CTA). We hypothesized that obtaining CTA on board a Mobile Stroke Unit and direct alert of the ET team shortens DTPT by over 30 minutes. Methods— We compared DTPT between patients having CTA onboard the Mobile Stroke Unit then subsequent ET from September 2018 to November 2019 and patients in Mobile Stroke Unit from August 2014 to August 2018, when onboard CTA was not yet being used. We also correlated DTPT with change in National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale between baseline and 24 hours. Results— Median DTPT was 53.5 (95% CI, 35–67) minutes shorter with onboard CTA and direct ET team notification: 41 minutes (interquartile range, 30.0–63.5) versus 94.5 minutes (interquartile range, 69.8–117.3; P <0.001). Median on-scene time was 31.5 minutes (interquartile range, 28.8–35.5) versus 27.0 minutes (interquartile range, 23.0–31.0) ( P <0.001). Shorter DTPT correlated with greater improvement of National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (correlation=−0.2, P =0.07). Conclusions— Prehospital Mobile Stroke Unit management including on-board CTA and ET team alert substantially shortens DTPT. Registration— URL: https://clinicaltrials.gov ; Unique identifier: NCT02190500.

scholarly journals Influence of recent direct-to-EVT trials on practical decision-making for the treatment of acute ischemic stroke patients

2021 ◽  
pp. 159101992110579
Author(s):  
Rosalie McDonough ◽  
Johanna Ospel ◽  
Nima Kashani ◽  
Manon Kappelhof ◽  
Jianmin Liu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Ischemic Stroke ◽  
Acute Ischemic Stroke ◽  
Treatment Strategies ◽  
Large Vessel Occlusion ◽  
Stroke Patients ◽  
Vessel Occlusion ◽  
Randomized Controlled ◽  
Intravenous Alteplase ◽  
Short Time ◽  
Current Guidelines

Background Current guidelines recommend that eligible acute ischemic stroke (AIS) patients receive intravenous alteplase (IVT) prior to endovascular treatment (EVT). Six randomized controlled trials recently sought to determine the risks of administering IVT prior to EVT, five of which have been published/presented. It is unclear whether and how the results of these trials will change guidelines. With the DEBATE survey, we assessed the influence of the recent trials on physicians’ IVT treatment strategies in the setting of EVT for large vessel occlusion (LVO) stroke. Methods Participants were provided with 15 direct-to-mothership case-scenarios of LVO stroke patients and asked whether they would treat with IVT  +  EVT or EVT alone, a) before publication/presentation of the direct-to-EVT trials, and b) now (knowing the trial results). Logistic regression clustered by respondent was performed to assess factors influencing the decision to adopt an EVT-alone paradigm after publication/presentation of the trial results. Results 289 participants from 37 countries provided 4335 responses, of which 13.5% (584/4335) changed from an IVT  +  EVT strategy to EVT alone after knowing the trial results. Very few switched from EVT alone to IVT  +  EVT (8/4335, 0.18%). Scenarios involving a long thrombus (RR 1.88, 95%CI:1.56–2.26), cerebral micro-hemorrhages (RR 1.78, 95%CI:1.43–2.23), and an expected short time to recanalization (RR 1.46 95%CI:1.19–1.78) had the highest chance of participants switching to an EVT-only strategy. Conclusion In light of the recent direct-to-EVT trials, a sizeable proportion of stroke physicians appears to be rethinking IVT treatment strategies of EVT-eligible mothership patients with AIS due to LVO in specific situations.

Abstract WP268: Evaluation and Validation of Prehospital Acute Stroke Severity Scale to Predict Large Vessel Occlusion in Patients with Proven Large Vessel Occlusion; Single Center Study in US

Stroke ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 48 (suppl_1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Muhammad H Niazi ◽  
Mohammad El-Ghanem ◽  
Alicia Richardson ◽  
Kathy Morrison ◽  
Reichwein Raymond ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Hospital Setting ◽  
High Sensitivity ◽  
Final Analysis ◽  
Large Vessel ◽  
P Value ◽  
Stroke Severity ◽  
Large Vessel Occlusion ◽  
Anterior Circulation ◽  
Vessel Occlusion ◽  
Single Center Study

Background: In 2015 guidelines regarding endovascular treatment (ET) of Large Vessel Occlusion (LVO) in acute ischemic stroke (AIS) were changed, leading to more patients being transferred to comprehensive stroke centers (CSC) for ET in selected patients, sometimes bypassing primary stroke centers. In the era of ET, there is a need for a simple yet sensitive pre-hospital tool to triage appropriate patients to CSCs. Many prehospital stroke scales predicting LVO are not in widespread clinical use because they are complex and not reliable. A recently published Denmark study demonstrated the PASS tool (Score range 0-3) for detecting LVO where a score of ≥2 was considered to be optimal in predicting LVO with sensitivity of 0.66. Methods: A retrospective analysis of AIS patients with confirmed anterior circulation LVO by catheter-based cerebral angiography between January 2015 and June 2016 was conducted. PASS scores were calculated and correlated with NIHSS to assess for severity of the stroke. Results: Fifty-four patients received ET during the study period. Those who had posterior circulation LVO were excluded, leaving 44 patients for final analysis. Only 5 (11.4%) patients had PASS score of <2 while 39 patients (88.6 %) had a score of ≥2 showing sensitivity of 0.89 for those patients with LVO. Average NIHSS scores were 11 (95% CI 6.6-15) for PASS <2 and 20 (95% CI 18.5-22.5) for PASS ≥2 (p value 0.005). Conclusion: The PASS tool is simple, quick, and easy to perform and has high sensitivity in AIS patients with LVO. To assess its value and efficacy in real time it should be implemented into EMS systems and be performed in the pre-hospital setting.

Effect of Occlusion Site on the Safety and Efficacy of Intravenous Alteplase Before Endovascular Thrombectomy: A Prespecified Subgroup Analysis of DIRECT-MT

Stroke ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yu Zhou ◽  
Pengfei Xing ◽  
Zifu Li ◽  
Xiaoxi Zhang ◽  
Lei Zhang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Carotid Artery ◽  
Internal Carotid Artery ◽  
Odds Ratio ◽  
Internal Carotid ◽  
Modified Rankin Scale ◽  
Large Vessel Occlusion ◽  
Bridging Therapy ◽  
Vessel Occlusion ◽  
Endovascular Thrombectomy ◽  
Intravenous Alteplase

Background and Purpose: Recent trials showed thrombectomy alone was comparable to bridging therapy in patients with anterior circulation large vessel occlusion eligible for both intravenous alteplase and endovascular thrombectomy. We performed this study to examine whether occlusion site modifies the effect of intravenous alteplase before thrombectomy. Methods: This is a prespecified subgroup analysis of a randomized trial evaluating risk and benefit of intravenous alteplase before thrombectomy (DIRECT-MT [Direct Intra-Arterial Thrombectomy in Order to Revascularize AIS Patients With Large Vessel Occlusion Efficiently in Chinese Tertiary Hospitals]). Among 658 randomized patients, 640 with baseline occlusion site information were included. The primary outcome was the score on the modified Rankin Scale at 90 days. Multivariable ordinal logistic regression analysis with an interaction term was used to estimate treatment effect modification by occlusion location (internal carotid artery versus M1 versus M2). We report the adjusted common odds ratio for a shift toward better outcome on the modified Rankin Scale after thrombectomy alone compared with combination treatment adjusted for age, the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale score at baseline, the time from stroke onset to randomization, the modified Rankin Scale score before stroke onset, and collateral score per the DIRECT-MT statistical analysis plan. Results: The overall adjusted common odds ratio was 1.08 (95% CI, 0.82–1.43) with thrombectomy alone compared with combination treatment, and there was no significant treatment-by-occlusion site interaction ( P =0.47). In subgroups based on occlusion location, we found the following adjusted common odds ratios: 0.99 (95% CI, 0.62–1.59) for internal carotid artery occlusions, 1.12 (95% CI, 0.77–1.64) for M1 occlusions, and 1.22 (95% CI, 0.53–2.79) for M2 occlusions. No treatment-by-occlusion site interactions were observed for dichotomized modified Rankin Scale distributions and successful reperfusion (extended thrombolysis in Cerebral Infarction score ≥2b) before thrombectomy. Differences in symptomatic hemorrhage rate were not significant between occlusion locations (internal carotid artery occlusion: 7.02% in bridging therapy versus 7.14% for thrombectomy alone, P =0.97; M1 occlusion: 5.06% versus 2.48%, P =0.22; M2 occlusion: 9.09% versus 4.76%; P =0.78). Conclusions: In this prespecified subgroup of a randomized trial, we found no evidence that occlusion location can inform intravenous alteplase decisions in endovascular treatment eligible patients directly presenting at endovascular treatment capable centers. Future studies are needed to confirm our findings. REGISTRATION: URL: https://www.clinicaltrials.gov ; Unique identifier: NCT03469206.

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