Standards of practice in acute ischemic stroke intervention: International recommendations

Movement disorders following mechanical thrombectomy resulting in ischemic lesions of the basal ganglia: An emerging clinical entity

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

Post-stroke movement disorders (PMDs) following ischemic lesions of the basal ganglia (BG) are a known entity, but data regarding their incidence are lacking. Ischemic strokes secondary to proximal middle cerebral artery (MCA) occlusion treated with thrombectomy represent a model of selective damage to the BG. The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence and features of movement disorders after selective BG ischemia in patients with successfully reperfused acute ischemic stroke (AIS).

METHODS

We enrolled 64 consecutive subjects with AIS due to proximal MCA occlusion treated with thrombectomy. Patients were clinically evaluated by a movement disorders specialist for PMDs onset at baseline, and after 6 and 12 months.

RESULTS

None of the patients showed an identifiable movement disorder in the subacute phase of the stroke. At 6 and 12 months, respectively, 7/25 (28%) and 7/13 (53.8%) evaluated patients developed PMDs. The clinical spectrum of PMDs encompassed parkinsonism, dystonia and chorea, either isolated or combined. In most patients, symptoms were contralateral to the lesion, although a subset of patients presented with bilateral involvement and prominent axial signs.

CONCLUSION

Post-stroke movement disorders are not uncommon in long-term follow-up of successfully reperfused AIS. Follow-up conducted by a multidisciplinary team is strongly advisable in patients with selective lesions of the BG after AIS, even if asymptomatic at discharge.

Improving stroke clinical guideline adherence in an Australian hospital using a clinician-led implementation process

BACKGROUND

Private hospitals in Australia manage 11% of acute and 48% of rehabilitation stroke admissions, yet little is known about implementation of stroke clinical guidelines in this setting. Clinical guidelines recommend that acute stroke patients be co-located in a stroke unit in a geographically defined area, rather than dispersed across the hospital.

OBJECTIVE

To investigate post-intervention adherence to clinical guidelines for stroke management, and to explore staff barriers and facilitators to guideline implementation.

METHODS

Observational study before-and-after local implementation of Australian stroke clinical guidelines. The primary outcome was a change in the proportion of patients who were physically co-located in an acute stroke unit. Secondary outcomes included changes in adherence to additional acute and rehabilitation guideline criteria, and staff identification of barriers and facilitators to guide implementation. Data were collected from medical record audits, health service information and staff surveys.

RESULTS

Co-location in an acute stroke unit did not change significantly after guideline implementation (49% adherence pre-intervention and 54% post-intervention). Across acute and rehabilitation wards, 15% (11/72) of guideline criteria improved (p < .05). These related to assessments of swallowing and neglect, presence of a stroke care co-ordinator and occupational therapist, post-discharge care plan, provision of patient education and return to driving. Facilitators to guideline implementation included staff education, collaboration, and dissemination of user-friendly stroke policies.

CONCLUSION

Stroke clinical guideline implementation led to a favorable uptake of some criteria, yet not all. Implementation was assisted by staff education, user-friendly stroke policies and multidisciplinary team collaboration.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

ANZCTR: registration number ACTRN12616000646448 (http://www.ANZCTR.org.au/ACTRN12616000646448.aspx).

Factors affecting length of hospital stay in stroke survivors in South Africa: A call for a stroke unit

Background

Stroke in Africa is a growing and neglected crisis with the incidence more than doubling in low- to middle-income countries in the last four decades. Despite this growing threat, implementation of stroke models of care in hospitals is lacking. Stroke units as a model of care have been shown to decrease mortality, reduce length of hospital stay (LOS) and improve outcomes in stroke survivors.

Objectives

To determine the profile of stroke survivors and identify factors contributing to LOS at Chris Hani Baragwanath Academic Hospital (CHBAH) in South Africa to support stroke unit implementation.

Method

This study involved a retrospective record review of stroke survivors admitted to CHBAH between September 2018 and May 2019. Factors associated with LOS were determined using linear regression models; univariate and multiple regression models were fitted.

Results

A total of 567 participants' data were included. Overall, 51.85% of the participants required services from all rehabilitation disciplines. The median LOS was 9 days (interquartile ranges [IQR]: 5-11 days) with each discipline providing an average of six sessions. Participants who were referred to the rehabilitation team 3 days after admission to hospital stayed 6 days longer compared with those participants who were referred earlier (p < 0.001).

Conclusion

Delayed referral to the rehabilitation team resulted in increased LOS. This study supports the need for dedicated stroke units to decrease hospital LOS and improve patients' outcomes by ensuring early, well-coordinated rehabilitation intervention and discharge planning.

Contribution

The study highlights the urgency for re-evaluation of stroke care infrastructure within Gauteng to streamline and provide accessible stroke models of care.

Flow dynamics in acute ischemic stroke due to embolic occlusion of a fetal posterior cerebral artery treated with endovascular thrombectomy - report of two cases

The fetal variant of the posterior cerebral artery (fPCA) conserves a major blood flow from the anterior to the posterior cerebral circulation via a strong persistent caudal portion of the embryonic internal carotid artery. We present two cases where endovascular treatment in acute ischemic stroke was complicated by this flow diversion. Though direct thrombectomy of the fPCA using a stent retriever was feasible and successful in both cases outcome remained unfavourable due to a continuous redirection of embolic material into the posterior circulation. Knowledge of flow dynamics in a fPCA is important for endovascular treatment in acute ischemic stroke.

Advanced imaging in acute ischemic stroke: an updated guide to the hub-and-spoke hospitals

PURPOSE OF REVIEW

The purpose of this review is to summarize the role of the hub-and-spoke system in acute stroke care, highlight the role of advanced imaging and discuss emerging concepts and trials relevant to the hub-and-spoke model.

RECENT FINDINGS

The advent of advanced stroke multimodal imaging has provided increased treatment options for patients, particularly in rural and regional areas. When used in the hub-and-spoke model, advanced imaging can help facilitate and triage transfers, appropriately select patients for acute therapy and treat patients who may otherwise be ineligible based on traditional time metrics.Recent, ongoing trials in this area may lead to an even greater range of patients being eligible for acute reperfusion therapy, including mild strokes and patients with large core infarct volumes.

SUMMARY

Integration of advanced imaging into a hub-and-spoke system, when complemented with other systems including telemedicine, improves access to acute stroke care for patients in regional and rural areas.

CE: Acute Ischemic Stroke

ABSTRACT

Stroke, the most common form of cerebrovascular disease, is a leading cause of death and disability throughout the world. There have been no significant advances in the development of effective therapeutics for hemorrhagic stroke, and for ischemic stroke highly effective, evidence-based therapies such as alteplase and mechanical thrombectomy are widely underutilized. Improving outcomes for patients experiencing ischemic stroke requires faster recognition and appropriate intervention within the treatment window (the first 24 hours after symptom onset). This article discusses the pathophysiology underlying the various types of ischemic stroke; the risk factors for ischemic stroke; stroke presentation; and the evidence-based treatments, nursing assessments, and monitoring protocols that are critical to patient recovery.

[Nationwide treatment reality of patients with acute ischemic stroke in Germany : Update of the regionalized analysis on use of recanalization treatment procedures and stroke complex treatment]

BACKGROUND

The guidelines of the German Society for Neurology regarding the diagnostics and treatment of acute ischemic stroke contain the general recommendation of treatment on a stroke unit (SU) and the use of recanalizing treatment (intravenous thrombolysis, IVT; mechanical thrombectomy, MT) in appropriate patients. The nationwide availability of all three components represents a large organizational and healthcare political challenge.

OBJECTIVE

Updated nationwide analysis of treatment rates in Germany based on a regionalized evaluation.

METHODS

Based on the patient's place of residence, nationwide data of all hospitalized patients were evaluated using the German diagnosis-related groups (DRG) statistics from 2018 and compared with previous years. The rates for SU treatment, IVT and MT in the 412 German regional districts were analyzed. The 412 regions were grouped according to the degree of urbanization.

RESULTS

Nationwide, a total of 224,647 patient cases with a main diagnosis of acute ischemic stroke were treated in 1382 hospitals in Germany in 2018. Overall, relatively high treatment rates were determined (SU = 73.3%; IVT = 16.4%; MT = 6.5%). Only 10.2% of treatments in the SU were performed on a SU located at a hospital with no neurology department. The regionalized analysis showed large treatment ranges for all three therapeutic components, with significantly lower treatment rates in regions with a lower degree of urbanization (SU, IVT, MT rates: urban = 75.4%, 17.4%, 7.5% and rural = 67.1%; 15.4%, 5.3%, respectively).

CONCLUSION

Hospitalized healthcare in Germany shows high treatment rates for both SU admission and acute recanalization treatment in patients with acute ischemic stroke; however, there is further optimization potential in rural regions.