Clinical and organisational quality indicators for the optimal management of acute ischaemic stroke in the era of thrombectomy: a scoping review and expert consensus study.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study is to identify clinical and organisational quality indicators conducive to the optimal interdisciplinary management of acute-phase ischaemic stroke. METHOD: A scoping review based on the six-step methodological framework of Arksey and O'Malley (2005) was conducted including a Delphi process with an experts committee. DATA SOURCES: MEDLINE, CINAHL, Academic search complete, Cochrane Library databases, in addition to Google Scholar and Google were searched through January 2015 to February 2023. ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA: French and English references, dealing with clinical and organisational indicators for the management and optimal care of adults with acute ischaemic stroke. DATA EXTRACTION AND SYNTHESIS: After duplicate removal, all publications were checked for title and abstract. The full text of articles meeting the inclusion criteria was reviewed. Two independent reviewers performed 10% of the study selection and data extraction. Data collected underwent descriptive statistics. RESULTS: Of the 4343 references identified, 31 were included in the scoping review. About 360 indicators were identified and preliminary screened by two stroke experts. Fifty-four indicators were evaluated for validity, relevance and feasibility by a committee of experts including a partner patient using a Delphi method. A total of 34 indicators were selected and classified based on dimensions of care performance such as accessibility of services, quality of care and resource optimisation. Safety accounted for about one-third of the indicators, while there were few indicators for sustainability, equity of access and responsiveness. CONCLUSION: This scoping review shows there are many clinical and organisational indicators in the literature that are relevant, valid and feasible for improving the quality of care in the acute phase of ischaemic stroke. Future research is essential to highlight clinical and organisational practices in the acute phase. REGISTRATION DETAILS: https://osf.io/qc4mk/.

Postexercise hypotensive response in stroke patients following acute moderate or high intensity cycling session.

BACKGROUND: Hypertension is highly prevalent in stroke patients and reducing blood pressure is a priority. Aerobic exercise is known to induce postexercise hypotensive responses, but limited studies have documented this concept in stroke patients. The purpose was to investigate the effect of a single bout of moderate intensity continuous training (MICT) and high-intensity interval training (HIIT) on postexercise ambulatory blood pressure with patients with prior ischemic stroke or transient ischemic attack (TIA). METHODS: Ten hypertensive adults (mean age: 70±9 years) with prior ischemic stroke or TIA participated using a randomized crossover design. Ambulatory blood pressure was monitored for up to 8 hours after either ergocycle MICT or HIIT of respectively 50% and 95% of peak power output. Blood pressure was compared to pre-exercise resting measure. RESULTS: HIIT and MICT induced a decrease of systolic blood pressure of -11.0±9.2 mmHg and -4.7±4.5 mmHg respectively (P=0.03) immediately after the exercise. Ambulatory systolic blood pressure showed a steady linear increase (R2=0.90; P<0.001) of ~1.2 mmHg/hour and returned to pre-exercise measure after 8 hours. Effect of the two exercise conditions over time did not significantly differ (P=0.278). Diastolic blood pressure was not affected by both exercises. CONCLUSIONS: Those results suggest that HIIT induce a systolic blood pressure reduction of greater magnitude than MICT immediately after cycling exercise among patients with prior ischemic stroke or TIA. For both exercises, effects on ambulatory blood pressure are similar and persist up to 8 hours.

Addition of high-intensity interval training to a moderate intensity continuous training cardiovascular rehabilitation program after ischemic cerebrovascular disease: A randomized controlled trial.

Introduction: Moderate intensity continuous training (MICT) is usually recommended for stroke or transient ischemic attack (TIA) patients. High intensity interval training (HIIT) has emerged as a potentially effective method for increasing cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) among clinical populations. Its effectiveness remains to be demonstrated after stroke. A combined program of HIIT and MICT was designed to create a realistic exercise program implemented for a clinical setting to help patients become more active. Purpose: This study aimed to compare the effects of a 6-month exercise program with either MICT only or a combination of HIIT and MICT and a control group in terms of CRF, cardiovascular risk factors, functionality, cognitive function (Montreal Cognitive Assessment) and depression markers (Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale). Methods: This randomized controlled trial started with 52 participants (33 men and 19 women, mean age: 69.2 ± 10.7) divided into three groups: HIIT + MICT combined, MICT, and control. Both exercise groups consisted of 4 weekly sessions including supervised and at-home exercise. Outcomes were assessed at T0 (baseline measure), T6 (end of exercise protocols), and T12 (follow-up), 40 participants having completed the 12-month follow-up. Results: At T6, both HIIT+MICT and MICT programs provided a similar increase of CRF (3 ml·min-1·kg-1) from baseline (p < 0.01), while the control group showed a global slight decrease. Despite some decrease of CRF at T12 compared to T6, improvement persisted 6 months post-intervention (HIIT + MICT: p < 0.01 and MICT: p < 0.05). The control group decreased compared with baseline (p < 0.05). The two exercise programs induced a comparable increase in self-reported physical activity and a decrease in anxiety and depression markers. Participants in HIIT + MICT and MICT programs declared a good degree of acceptability assessed by the Acceptability and Preferences Questionnaire. Conclusion: A 6-month HIIT + MICT combined program and a standard MICT program induced similar improvements in CRF, self-reported physical activity and anxiety and depression markers among patients with prior ischemic stroke or TIA compared with a control group. These effects appear to persist over time. Addition of HIIT was safe and considered acceptable by participants. Our results do not support any superiority of the combination HIIT + MICT nor disadvantage vs. MICT in this population.