Stroke Incidence in Victoria, Australia-Emerging Improvements

Demographic factors effect stoke-related healthcare utilisation among Australian stroke survivors

Health equity is a fast emerging priority for most healthcare systems around the world. Factors impacting health equity include education level, geographical location, age, gender, employment status and income. However, research examining the effect of these demographic variables on health service utilisation among mid-aged and older post-stroke adults is limited. Data was obtained from a sub-study of the Sax Institute's 45 and Up Study, which is conducted in Australia. The sub-study survey collected demographic, health service utilisation and health status information from 576 participants who had a previous stroke diagnosis. Poisson regression was used to examine the association between demographic characteristics and number of consultations with a doctor and/or an allied health practitioner over a 12 month period. All demographic measures were significantly associated with the number of consultations with doctors and/or allied health practitioners. The number of doctor consultations increased for those who struggled to live on their available income (IRR = 1.41), but decreased for females (IRR = 0.81), those who reside in an inner regional area (IRR = 0.83), those who were separated, divorced or widowed (IRR = 0.61), and for those who completed a trade, apprenticeship or diploma (IRR = 0.83). The number of allied health practitioner consultations increased for those who completed a trade, apprenticeship or diploma (IRR = 1.27), and for those who struggled to live on their available income (IRR = 1.38), but decreased for increasing age (IRR = 0.87), females (IRR = 0.78), and for those who reside in an outer regional or remote area (IRR = 0.49). We identified several demographic factors associated with a lower frequency and type of health care services used by post-stroke adults. These possible barriers need to be explored further, as reduced use of healthcare services may lead to poorer stroke outcomes in these demographics. Specifically, researching strategies to best support individuals facing these additional challenges is necessary to ensure equitable healthcare for all Australians.

Temporal and age-specific trends in incidence and 1-year case-fatality of hospitalized ischaemic stroke in Victoria, Australia

OBJECTIVES

Investigate temporal and age-specific trends in the incidence of ischaemic stroke and case-fatality risk in Victoria, Australia.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Patients hospitalised with first ischaemic stroke between 2012 and 2018 were included. Trends in age-standardised incidence rates of ischaemic stroke were assessed using linear regression models. Cox proportional hazard regression models were used to examine the case-fatality risk.

RESULTS

Overall age-standardised incidence of ischaemic stroke was stable from 2012/13 to 2017/18 (87.6 to 84.8 events per 100,000 population; Annual percentage change [APC] -0.32; 95% Confidence interval [CI] -1.13 to 0.50). The incidence declined in females (APC -1.00; 95% CI -1.49 to -0.50), people aged 75-84 years (APC -1.60; 95% CI -2.83 to -0.36) and in metropolitan areas (APC -0.74; 95% CI -1.02 to -0.45). The risk of 1-year case-fatality (HR 0.85; 95% CI 0.78 to 0.93) significantly declined in 2016/17 compared to 2012/13.

CONCLUSIONS

Overall ischaemic stroke incidence remained stable while decreasing trends were observed in females, elderly and metropolitan areas. 1-year case-fatality declined from 2012 to 2017.

Identification of factors associated with new-onset vascular disease in patients admitted for video-EEG monitoring: A longitudinal cohort study

OBJECTIVE

People with epilepsy are at a higher risk of developing vascular disease. Understanding the risk factors in observational studies is hampered by the challenge in separating epilepsy-related risk and treatment-related risk, and uncertainty in the epilepsy diagnosis. This study aimed to identify factors associated with risk of subsequent vascular disease in patients with video-EEG monitoring (VEM) confirmed epilepsy.

METHODS

We included patients with a diagnosis of epilepsy and nonepileptic disorders between January 1, 1995, and December 31, 2015. Incident cardiovascular, cerebrovascular, and peripheral vascular disease was determined by linkage to a state-wide hospital admissions database between 1st July 1994 and 28th February 2018. Incidence was compared with the general population.

RESULTS

1728 patients (59.7% female, median age 35 years) underwent VEM, and were followed up for a median of 9.2 years (range 2.2-22.9 years). Eight-hundred and thirty -two were diagnosed with epilepsy and 896 nonepileptic disorders. The incidence of cerebrovascular disease was higher in both patients with epilepsy (incidence rate ratio [IRR] 1.78, p = 0.001) and with nonepileptic disorders (IRR 1.61, p < 0.001) than in the general population. Patients who took valproic acid (VPA) were at a lower risk of vascular disease than those taking enzyme-inducing antiseizure medications (EIASM, subdistribution hazard ratio [SHR] 0.42, p = 0.013), and those taking neither VPA nor EIASM (SHR 0.47, p = 0.03). There was no difference in the incidence of vascular disease between patients with epilepsy and those without epilepsy (SHR 0.94, p = 0.766). Factors associated with increased risk included age (SHR 1.04, p < 0.001), male sex (SHR 1.50, p = 0.017), and smoking (SHR 1.68, p = 0.017).

SIGNIFICANCE

In this study, both patients with epilepsy and without epilepsy had increased vascular risk. This suggests that the increased risk may be in part due to factors not directly related to epilepsy, such as EIASM use and vascular risk factors.

The effect of the Mediterranean diet on health outcomes in post-stroke adults: a systematic literature review of intervention trials

BACKGROUND

Stroke represents a major source of mortality and morbidity worldwide. Guidelines for stroke management and secondary prevention focus on reducing stroke-related risk factors such as smoking cessation, exercise and diet. Several clinical practice guidelines specifically recommend a Mediterranean diet (MD) for individuals with stroke. However, these recommendations rely primarily on observational research. The aim of this review is to critically appraise the current experimental evidence assessing the use of a Mediterranean diet on health outcomes in post-stroke adults.

METHODS

A systematic literature review was conducted of original research which assessed the role of a Mediterranean diet on health outcomes in post-stroke adults. The following databases were searched: PROQUEST, SCOPUS (Elsevier), MEDLINE (EBSCO), EMBase and Cochrane Library up to the 25th of August 2021.

RESULTS

A total of 6 studies from a total of 5838 identified studies met the full inclusion criteria and were included in this review. Several different health outcomes were assessed, including blood pathology tests, physical examinations, secondary vascular events and mortality. The Mediterranean diet appears to be beneficial for systolic and diastolic blood pressure, LDL cholesterol, BMI and waist circumference.

CONCLUSION

This review suggests a Mediterranean diet may be helpful for several health outcomes in post-stroke adults. However, more research is needed to confirm these findings. To ensure robust methodology and replication of results, specific details of the included and excluded foods, quantities and serving sizes should be reported in future research.

The association between fatigue severity and risk of falls among middle-aged and older Australian stroke survivors

Background

Fatigue is a common and often debilitating symptom experienced by many stroke survivors. Significant post stroke fatigue may predispose individuals to other health complications, such as falls, which can lead to fractures and soft tissue injuries. Only limited research has examined the association between fatigue and falls in stroke survivors.

Methods

Data were obtained from the Sax Institute’s 45 and Up Study, from a subset of individuals who had experienced a stroke. The Modified Fatigue Impact Scale—5-item version (MFIS-5) was used to measure the level of fatigue. A logistic regression model, adjusted for stroke characteristics and comorbidities, was used to determine the magnitude of association between change in fatigue score and odds of having had a fall.

Results

A total of 576 participants completed the questionnaire. A total of 214 (37.2%) participants reported having had a fall in the previous 12 months. There was a statistically significant association between fatigue scores and fall status (p < 0.001). Specifically, for every 1-point increase in the fatigue score (MFIS-5) (i.e. higher level of fatigue), the odds of a person having a fall is 1.10 times greater (AOR = 1.10; 95% CI 1.05, 1.15; p < 0.001).

Conclusion

This study revealed an association between an increasing risk of falls with increasing severity of post stroke fatigue. Accurate detection and management of fatigue may help reduce the risk of falls and should be the focus of future research.

Application of Machine Learning Techniques to Identify Data Reliability and Factors Affecting Outcome After Stroke Using Electronic Administrative Records

Aim: To use available electronic administrative records to identify data reliability, predict discharge destination, and identify risk factors associated with specific outcomes following hospital admission with stroke, compared to stroke specific clinical factors, using machine learning techniques. Method: The study included 2,531 patients having at least one admission with a confirmed diagnosis of stroke, collected from a regional hospital in Australia within 2009-2013. Using machine learning (penalized regression with Lasso) techniques, patients having their index admission between June 2009 and July 2012 were used to derive predictive models, and patients having their index admission between July 2012 and June 2013 were used for validation. Three different stroke types [intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH), ischemic stroke, transient ischemic attack (TIA)] were considered and five different comparison outcome settings were considered. Our electronic administrative record based predictive model was compared with a predictive model composed of "baseline" clinical features, more specific for stroke, such as age, gender, smoking habits, co-morbidities (high cholesterol, hypertension, atrial fibrillation, and ischemic heart disease), types of imaging done (CT scan, MRI, etc.), and occurrence of in-hospital pneumonia. Risk factors associated with likelihood of negative outcomes were identified. Results: The data was highly reliable at predicting discharge to rehabilitation and all other outcomes vs. death for ICH (AUC 0.85 and 0.825, respectively), all discharge outcomes except home vs. rehabilitation for ischemic stroke, and discharge home vs. others and home vs. rehabilitation for TIA (AUC 0.948 and 0.873, respectively). Electronic health record data appeared to provide improved prediction of outcomes over stroke specific clinical factors from the machine learning models. Common risk factors associated with a negative impact on expected outcomes appeared clinically intuitive, and included older age groups, prior ventilatory support, urinary incontinence, need for imaging, and need for allied health input. Conclusion: Electronic administrative records from this cohort produced reliable outcome prediction and identified clinically appropriate factors negatively impacting most outcome variables following hospital admission with stroke. This presents a means of future identification of modifiable factors associated with patient discharge destination. This may potentially aid in patient selection for certain interventions and aid in better patient and clinician education regarding expected discharge outcomes.

Prevalence of internal carotid artery stenosis in ambulatory patients presenting for non-emergent percutaneous coronary angiogram in a single Australian centre

Introduction

Association between coronary artery disease (CAD) and internal carotid artery stenosis (ICAS) could prove clinically relevant. However, evidence defining this association is currently inconclusive. Our study investigates the prevalence of ICAS in non-emergent, ambulatory patients presenting for PCA with suspected CAD in an Australian context.

Methods

Between February 2019 and June 2019, 121 consecutive participants were verbally consented and enrolled in our study. The data were analysed retrospectively. PCA and CUS were performed within 24 h of each other. Multinomial logistic regression assessed independent predictors for ICAS, with statistical significance set at P value < 0.05. Linear regression analysis correlated CAD and ICAS severity, with significance of a P-value < 0.05. Analysis was conducted using IBM SPSS 26 software (Chicago, Illinois).

Results

The final study included 121 patients (age 73 ± 9 years, 76.9% male). ICAS on CUS was present in 55.4% of participants for PCA. CAD was an independent risk factor for ICAS on multinomial logistic regression odds ratio 3.87 (P = 0.023). CAD severity (multi vessel disease) showed significant correlation with ICAS r = 0.22 (P = 0.014) using linear regression analysis.

Conclusion

CAD is an independent predictor of ICAS, and severity of ICAS is correlated with CAD disease. However, most participants had only minor ICAS (16-49% diameter stenosis). Our findings are consistent with internationally published studies, suggesting their data are generalisable to the Australian population. Larger studies are needed to address the applicability of CUS screening in patients with advanced CAD.

Incidence of Hospitalization for Stroke in Queensland, Australia: Younger Adults at Risk

BACKGROUND

Trends in the incidence of stroke are important for health care planning. Information is particularly scarce in Australia, due to the paucity of studies with access to recent, large-scale, longitudinal datasets. In this paper we investigated the incidence of hospitalization for stroke by sex, age, and subtype in the whole State of Queensland (Australia).

METHODS

We obtained data of all hospital admissions for stroke in Queensland from 2002 to 2015. Age standardized hospitalization rates for first-ever stroke were calculated along with WHO adjusted rates. Poisson regression analyses were conducted to investigate the influence of time and gender on the incidence of subtypes of stroke as well as the total incidence.

RESULTS

Admissions for first-ever stroke were 57,597. Crude hospitalization incidence rose from 87 (95% confidence interval [CI], 84-90) to 108 (95%CI, 105-111) for both sexes. The highest increase was in the age bands 40-49 from 33 (95%CI, 26-40) to 54 (95%CI, 46-62; +62%) and 50-59 from 82 (95%CI, 70-93) to 127 (95%CI, 114-140; +56%) in men and in 60-69 from 118 (95%CI, 100-136) to 159 (95%CI, 143-175; +34%) in women. Ischemic subtype rates appeared to increase more than haemorrhagic rates. Age range, sex, and year reliably predicted incidence rates.

CONCLUSIONS

If these trends are maintained, the data predict further increases, especially in males aged 40-59. With people apparently stroking earlier and mortality rates dropping, the healthcare system in Australia is faced with a rapidly increasing care burden.

Population-based stroke surveillance using big data: state-wide epidemiological trends in admissions and mortality in New South Wales, Australia

OBJECTIVES

Epidemiological trends for major causes of death and disability, such as stroke, may be monitored using administrative data to guide public health initiatives and service delivery.

METHODS

We calculated admissions rates for ischaemic stroke, intracerebral haemorrhage and subarachnoid haemorrhage between 1 January 2005 and December 31^st, 2013 and rates of 30-day mortality and 365-day mortality in 30-day survivors to 31 December 2014 for patients aged 15 years or older from New South Wales, Australia. Annual Average Percentage Change in rates was estimated using negative binomial regression.

RESULTS

Of 81,703 eligible admissions, 64,047 (78.4%) were ischaemic strokes and 13,302 (16.3%) and 4,778 (5.8%) were intracerebral and subarachnoid haemorrhages, respectively. Intracerebral haemorrhage admissions significantly declined by an average of 2.2% annually (95% Confidence Interval = -3.5% to -0.9%) (p < 0.001). Thirty-day mortality rates significantly declined for ischaemic stroke (Average Percentage Change -2.9%, 95% Confidence Interval = -5.2% to -1.0%) (p = 0.004) and subarachnoid haemorrhage (Average Percentage Change = -2.6%, 95% Confidence Interval = -4.8% to -0.2%) (p = 0.04). Mortality at 365-days amongst 30-day survivors of ischaemic stroke and intracerebral haemorrhage was stable over time and increased in subarachnoid haemorrhage (Annual Percentage Change 6.2%, 95% Confidence Interval = -0.1% to 12.8%), although not significantly (p = 0.05).

DISCUSSION

Improved prevention may have underpinned declining intracerebral haemorrhage rates while survival gains suggest that innovations in care are being successfully translated. Mortality in patients surviving the acute period is unchanged and may be increasing for subarachnoid haemorrhage warranting investment in post-discharge care and secondary prevention.

Incidence and risk factors for stroke following percutaneous coronary intervention

BACKGROUND

Stroke rates and risk factors may change as percutaneous coronary intervention practice evolves and no data are available comparing stroke incidence after percutaneous coronary intervention to the general population.

AIMS

This study aimed to identify the incidence and risk factors for inpatient and subsequent stroke following percutaneous coronary intervention with comparison to age-matched controls.

METHODS

Data were prospectively collected from 22,618 patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention in the Melbourne Interventional Group registry (2005-2015). The cohort was compared to the North-East Melbourne Stroke Incidence Study population-based cohort (1997-1999) and predefined variables assessed for association with inpatient or outpatient stroke.

RESULTS

Inpatient stroke occurred in 0.33% (65.3% ischemic, 28.0% haemorrhagic, and 6.7% cause unknown), while outpatient stroke occurred in 0.55%. Inpatient and outpatient stroke were associated with higher rates of in-hospital major adverse cardiovascular outcomes (p < 0.0001) and mortality (p < 0.0001), as well as 12-month mortality (p < 0.0001). Factors independently associated with inpatient stroke were renal impairment, ST-elevation myocardial infarction, previous stroke, left ventricular ejection fraction 30-45%, and female sex, while those associated with outpatient stroke were previous stroke, chronic lung disease, previous myocardial infarction, rheumatoid arthritis, female sex, and older age. Compared to the age-standardized population-based cohort, stroke rates in the 12 months following discharge were higher for percutaneous coronary intervention patients <65 years old, but lower for percutaneous coronary intervention patients ≥65 years old.

CONCLUSIONS

Risk of inpatient stroke following percutaneous coronary intervention appears to be largely associated with clinical status at presentation, while outpatient stroke relates more to age and chronic disease. Compared to the general population, outpatient stroke rates following percutaneous coronary intervention are higher for younger, but not older, patients.

Evaluation of adult stroke presentations at an Emergency Department in Queensland Australia

BACKGROUND

Stroke is a leading cause of mortality and morbidity which places high demands on emergency departments (EDs). Currently there is limited data on stroke presentations to Australian EDs and the time performance management of these presentations. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate stroke presentations at an ED in Queensland, Australia in terms of demographics and time performance measures over a five year period.

METHODS

Retrospective analysis of ED presentations by patients ≥18 years with a final diagnosis of stroke between 1 July 2010 and 30 June 2015.

RESULTS

Over the five years there was a 51.4% increase in presentations diagnosed with stroke. The majority of these patients arrived by ambulance (71.0%) and were admitted (94.9%) with death in ED for 1.4% of presentations. From 2010 to 2015 for both haemorrhagic and ischaemic stroke there was a significant decrease in median LOS in ED (435 to 215 min, p < 0.05 and 451 to 238 min, p < 0.001 respectively) and in the proportion of patients in ED greater than four hours (82.4% to 44%, p < 0.05 and 92.4% to 45.8%,p < 0.0001 respectively).

CONCLUSION

Despite increased presentations of stroke, the ED improved in multiple time performance measures. Improving time-based targets in ED is particularly important for stroke presentations given the time critical nature of stroke management.