Temporal trends and rural-urban disparities in cerebrovascular risk factors,in-hospital management and outcomes in ischaemic strokes in China from 2005 to 2015:a nationwide serial cross-sectional survey

Background Stroke is the leading cause of mortality in China,with limited evidence of in-hospital burden obtained from nationwide surveys.We aimed to monitor and track the temporal trends and rural-urban disparities in cerebrovascular risk factors,management and outcomes from 2005 to 2015.Methods We used a two-stage random sampling survey to create a nationally representative sample of patients admitted for ischaemic stroke in 2005,2010 and 2015.We sampled participating hospitals with an economic-geographical region-stratified random-sampling approach first and then obtained patients with a systematic sampling approach.We weighed our survey data to estimate the national-level results and assess changes from 2005 to 2015.Results We analysed 28277 ischaemic stroke admissions from 189 participating hospitals.From 2005 to 2015,the estimated national hospital admission rate for ischaemic stroke per 100000 people increased(from 75.9 to 402.7,Ptrend<0.001),and the prevalence of risk factors,including hypertension,diabetes,dyslipidaemia and current smoking,increased.The composite score of diagnostic tests for stroke aetiology assessment(from 0.22 to 0.36,Ptrend<0.001)and secondary prevention treatments(from 0.46 to 0.70,Ptrend<0.001)were improved.A temporal decrease was found in discharge against medical advice(DAMA)(from 15.2%(95%CI 13.7%to 16.7%)to 8.6%(8.1%to 9.0%);adjusted Ptrend=0.046),and decreases in in-hospital mortality(0.7%in 2015 vs 1.8%in 2005;adjusted OR(aOR)0.52;95%CI 0.32 to 0.85)and the composite outcome of in-hospital mortality or DAMA(8.4%in 2015 vs 13.9%in 2005;aOR 0.65;95%CI 0.47 to 0.89)were observed.Disparities between rural and urban hospitals narrowed;however,disparities persisted in in-hospital management(brain MRI:rural-urban difference from−14.4%to−11.2%;cerebrovascular assessment:from−20.3%to−16.7%;clopidogrel:from−2.1%to−10.3%;anticoagulant for atrial fibrillation:from−10.9%to−8.2%)and in-hospital outcomes(DAMA:from 2.7%to 5.0%;composite outcome of in-hospital mortality or DAMA:from 2.4%to 4.6%).Conclusions From 2005 to 2015,improvements in hospital admission and in-hospital management for ischaemic stroke in China were found.A temporal improvement in DAMA and improvements in in-hospital mortality and the composite outcome of in-hospital mortality or DAMA were observed.Disparities between rural and urban hospitals generally narrowed but persisted.

Outcomes of Medicare beneficiaries hospitalised with transient ischaemic attack and stratification using the ABCD^(2) score

Background Long-term outcomes for Medicare beneficiaries hospitalised with transient ischaemic attack(TIA)and role of ABCD^(2) score in identifying high-risk individuals are not studied.Methods We identified 40825 Medicare beneficiaries hospitalised from 2011 to 2014 for a TIA to a Get With The Guidelines(GWTG)-Stroke hospital and classified them using ABCD^(2)s of mortality and rehospitalisation(all-cause,ischaemic stroke,haemorrhagic stroke,myocardial infarction,and gastrointestinal and intracranial haemorrhage)for high-risk versus low-risk groups adjusted for patient and hospital characteristics.Results Of the 40825 patients,35118(86%)were high risk(ABCD^(2)≥4)and 5707(14%)were low risk(ABCD^(2)=0-3).Overall rate of mortality during 1-year follow-up after hospital discharge for the index TIA was 11.7%,44.3% were rehospitalised for any reason and 3.6%were readmitted due to stroke.Patients with ABCD^(2) score≥4 had higher mortality at 1 year than not(adjusted HR 1.18,95%CI 1.07 to 1.30).Adjusted risks for ischaemic stroke,all-cause readmission and mortality/all-cause readmission at 1 year were also significantly higher for patients with ABCD^(2) score≥4 vs 0-3.In contrast,haemorrhagic stroke,myocardial infarction,gastrointestinal bleeding and intracranial haemorrhage risk were not significantly different by ABCD^(2) score.Conclusions This study validates the use of ABCD^(2) score for long-term risk assessment after TIA in patients aged 65 years and older.Attentive efforts for community-based follow-up care after TIA are needed for ongoing prevention in Medicare beneficiaries who were hospitalised for TIA.

Emergency medical services use and its association with acute ischaemic stroke evaluation and treatment in Singapore

Background Emergency medical services(EMS)is a critical link in the chain of stroke survival.We aimed to assess EMS use for stroke in Singapore,identify characteristics associated with EMS use and the association of EMS use with stroke evaluation and treatment.Methods The Singapore Stroke Registry combines nationwide EMS and public hospital data for stroke cases in Singapore.Multivariate regressions with the generalised estimating equations were performed to examine the association between EMS use and timely stroke evaluation and treatment.results Of 3555 acute ischaemic patients with symptom onset within 24 hours admitted to all five public hospitals between 2015 and 2016,68%arrived via EMS.Patients who used EMS were older,were less likely to be female,had higher stroke severity by National Institute of Health Stroke Scale and had a higher prevalence of atrial fibrillation or peripheral arterial disease.Patients transported by EMS were more likely to receive rapid evaluation(door-to imaging time≤25 min 34.3%vs 11.1%,OR=2.74(95%CI 1.40 to 5.38))and were more likely to receive intravenous tissue plasminogen activator(tPA,22.8%vs 4.6%,OR=4.61(95%CI 3.52 to 6.03)).Among patients treated with tPA,patients who arrived via EMS were more likely to receive timely treatment than self-transported patients(door-to needle time≤60 min 52.6%vs 29.4%,OR=2.58(95%CI 1.35 to 4.92)).Conclusions EMS use is associated with timely stroke evaluation and treatment in Singapore.Seamless EMS-Hospital stroke pathways and targeted public campaigns to advocate for appropriate EMS use have the potential to improve acute stroke care.