Artificial Intelligence-based automated CT brain interpretation to accelerate treatment for acute stroke in rural India: An interrupted time series study.

In resource-limited settings, timely treatment of acute stroke is dependent upon accurate diagnosis that draws on non-contrast computed tomography (NCCT) scans of the head. Artificial Intelligence (AI) based devices may be able to assist non-specialist physicians in NCCT interpretation, thereby enabling faster interventions for acute stroke patients in these settings. We evaluated the impact of an AI device by comparing the time to intervention (TTI) from NCCT imaging to significant intervention before (baseline) and after the deployment of AI, in patients diagnosed with stroke (ischemic or hemorrhagic) through a retrospective interrupted time series analysis at a rural hospital managed by non-specialists in India. Significant intervention was defined as thrombolysis or antiplatelet therapy in ischemic strokes, and mannitol for hemorrhagic strokes or mass effect. We also evaluated the diagnostic accuracy of the software using the teleradiologists' reports as ground truth. Impact analysis in a total of 174 stroke patients (72 in baseline and 102 after deployment) demonstrated a significant reduction of median TTI from 80 minutes (IQR: 56·8-139·5) during baseline to 58·50 (IQR: 30·3-118.2) minutes after AI deployment (Wilcoxon rank sum test-location shift: -21·0, 95% CI: -38·0, -7·0). Diagnostic accuracy evaluation in a total of 864 NCCT scans demonstrated the sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV) and negative predictive value (NPV) in detecting intracranial hemorrhage to be 0·89 (95% CI: 0·83-0·93), 0·99 (0·98-1·00), 0·96 (0·91-0·98) and 0·97 (0·96-0·98) respectively, and for infarct these were 0·84 (0·79-0·89), 0·81 (0·77-0·84), 0·58 (0·52-0·63), and 0·94 (0·92-0·96), respectively. AI-based NCCT interpretation supported faster abnormality detection with high accuracy, resulting in persons with acute stroke receiving significantly earlier treatment. Our results suggest that AI-based NCCT interpretation can potentially improve uptake of lifesaving interventions for acute stroke in resource-limited settings.

Healthcare professionals' perspectives of the provision of, and challenges for, eating, drinking and psychological support post stroke: findings from semistructured interviews across India.

AIM: This qualitative study explores with health professionals the provision of, and challenges for, postdischarge stroke care, focussing on eating, drinking and psychological support across India. DESIGN: Qualitative semistructured interviews. SETTING: Seven geographically diverse hospitals taking part in a Global Health Research Programme on Improving Stroke Care in India. PARTICIPANTS: A purposive sample of healthcare professionals with current experience of working with patients who had a stroke. RESULTS: Interviews with 66 healthcare professionals (23 nurses (14 staff nurses; 7 senior nurse officers; 1 intensive care unit nurse; 1 palliative care nurse)); 16 doctors (10 neurologists; 6 physicians); 10 physiotherapists; 5 speech and language therapists; 4 occupational therapists; 4 dieticians; 2 psychiatrists; and 2 social workers resulted in three main themes: integrated inpatient discharge care planning processes; postdischarge patient and caregiver role and challenges; patient and caregiver engagement post discharge. CONCLUSIONS: Discharge planning was integrated and customised, although resources were limited in some sites. Task shifting compensated for a lack of specialists but was limited by staff education and training. Caregivers faced challenges in accessing and providing postdischarge care. Postdischarge care was mainly hospital based, supported by teleservices, especially for rural populations. Further research is needed to understand postdischarge care provision and the needs of stroke survivors and their caregivers.

Establishing an effective antimicrobial stewardship program at four secondary-care hospitals in India using a hub-and-spoke model.

Background: The high burden of antimicrobial resistance in India necessitates the urgent implementation of antimicrobial stewardship programs (ASPs) in all healthcare settings in India. Most ASPs are based at tertiary-care centers, with sparse data available regarding the effectiveness of an ASP in a low-resource primary/secondary-care setting. Methods: We adopted a hub-and-spoke model to implement ASPs in 4 low-resource, secondary-care healthcare settings. The study included 3 phases measuring antimicrobial consumption data. In the baseline phase, we measured days on antimicrobial therapy (DOTs) with no feedback provided. This was followed by the implementation of a customized intervention package. In the postintervention phase, prospective review and feedback were offered by a trained physician or ASP pharmacist, and days of therapy (DOT) were measured. Results: In the baseline phase, 1,459 patients from all 4 sites were enrolled; 1,233 patients were enrolled in the postintervention phase. Both groups had comparable baseline characteristics. The key outcome, DOT per 1,000 patient days, was 1,952.63 in the baseline phase and significantly lower in the post-intervention period, at 1,483.06 (P = .001). Usage of quinolone, macrolide, cephalosporin, clindamycin, and nitroimidazole significantly decreased in the postintervention phase. Also, the rate of antibiotic de-escalation was significantly higher in the postintervention phase than the baseline phase (44% vs 12.5%; P < .0001), which suggests a definite trend toward judicious use of antibiotics. In the postintervention phase, 79.9% of antibiotic use was justified. Overall, the recommendations given by the ASP team were fully followed in 946 cases (77.7%), partially followed in 59 cases (4.8%), and not followed in 137 cases (35.7%). No adverse events were noted. Conclusion: Our hub-and-spoke model of ASP was successful in implementing ASPs in secondary-care hospitals in India, which are urgently needed.

Basal Ganglia Disease Mimicking Acute Encephalitis Syndrome Among Infants of Bodo Tribe, Assam.

We conducted a review of hospital records of infants with acute encephalitis syndrome with bilateral symmetrical basal ganglia infarcts, between 2011-2015, at a single center in Assam. Thiamine (as part of multivitamin injection) was used in the treatment of 23 infants and not used in 27; Only 1 (3.7%) infant died in the former group and 20 infants (86.9%) died in the latter [RR (95% CI) 0.04 (0.006,0.29); P<0.001). Two infants on follow-up had normal development, both in the thiamine group. The study suggests the possibility of subclinical thiamine deficiency, mitochondrial diseases, or SLC19A3 gene mutation in this population.