"Picture to puncture": a novel time metric to enhance outcomes in patients transferred for endovascular reperfusion in acute ischemic stroke.

BACKGROUND: Comprehensive stroke centers allow for regionalization of subspecialty stroke care. Efficacy of endovascular treatments, however, may be limited by delays in patient transfer. Our goal was to identify where these delays occurred and to assess the impact of such delays on patient outcome. METHODS AND RESULTS: This was a retrospective study evaluating patients treated with endovascular therapy from November 2010 to July 2012 at our institution. We compared patients transferred from outside hospitals with locally treated patients with respect to demographics, imaging, and treatment times. Good outcomes, as defined by 90-day modified Rankin Scale scores of 0 to 2, were analyzed by transfer status as well as time from initial computed tomography to groin puncture ("picture-to-puncture" time). A total of 193 patients were analyzed, with a mean age of 65.8 ± 14.5 years and median National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale score of 19 (interquartile range, 15-23). More than two thirds of the patients (132 [68%]) were treated from referring facilities. Outside transfers were noted to have longer picture-to-puncture times (205 minutes [interquartile range, 162-274] versus 89 minutes [interquartile range, 70-119]; P<0.001), which was attributable to the delays in transfer. This corresponded to fewer patients with favorable Alberta Stroke Program Early CT Scores on preprocedural computed tomographic imaging (Alberta Stroke Program Early CT Scores >7: 50% versus 76%; P<0.001) and significantly worse clinical outcomes (29% versus 51%; P=0.003). In a logistic regression model, picture-to-puncture times were independently associated with good outcomes (odds ratio, 0.994; 95% confidence interval, 0.990-0.999; P=0.009). CONCLUSIONS: Delays in picture-to-puncture times for interhospital transfers reduce the probability of good outcomes among treated patients. Strategies to reduce such delays herald an opportunity for hospitals to improve patient outcomes.

CODE FAST: a quality improvement initiative to reduce door-to-needle times.

BACKGROUND: Rapid delivery of IV tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) in qualifying patients leads to better clinical outcomes. The American Heart Association has reduced target door-to-needle (DTN) times from 60 to 45 min in the hopes of continued process improvements across institutions. OBJECTIVE: To start a quality improvement project called CODE FAST in order to reduce DTN times at our institution. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed data from our internally maintained database of patients treated with intravenous tPA before and after implementation of the CODE FAST protocol. We assessed demographic information, time of day and times of arrival to first image and delivery of tPA in patients from February 2014 to February 2015. Outcomes were assessed based on discharge to home. Univariate analysis was performed to assess for improvement in DTN times before and after implementation of the protocol. RESULTS: A total of 93 patients (41 pre-CODE FAST and 52 post-CODE FAST) received IV tPA during the study period. Patients were equally matched between the two groups except that in the pre-CODE FAST era patients receiving tPA were younger and more likely to be men. There was a substantial reduction in door-to-imaging time from a median of 16 to 8 min (p<0.0001) and DTN time with a reduction in the median from 62 to 25 min (p<0.0001). In logistic regression modeling, there was a trend towards more discharges to home in patients treated during the CODE FAST era. CONCLUSIONS: We present a quality improvement project that has been overwhelmingly successful in reducing DTN time to <30 min. The template we present may be helpful to other institutions looking to reduce their DTN times and may also reduce costs as we note a trend towards more discharges to home.

Severe hemiparesis as a prehospital tool to triage stroke severity: a pilot study to assess diagnostic accuracy and treatment times.

INTRODUCTION: With the publication of the recent trials showing the tremendous benefits of mechanical thrombectomy, opportunities exist to refine prehospital processes to identify patients with larger stroke syndromes. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed consecutive patients who were brought via scene flight from rural parts of the region to our institution, from December 1, 2014 to June 5, 2015, with severe hemiparesis or hemiplegia. We assessed the accuracy of the diagnosis of stroke and the number of patients requiring endovascular therapy. Moreover, we reviewed the times along the pathway of patients who were treated with endovascular therapy. RESULTS: 45 patients were brought via helicopter from the field to our institution. 27 (60%) patients were diagnosed with an ischemic stroke. Of these, 12 (26.7%) were treated with mechanical thrombectomy and 6 (13.3%) with intravenous tissue plasminogen activator alone. An additional three patients required embolization procedures for either a dural arteriovenous fistula or cerebral aneurysm. Thus a total of 15 (33%) patients received an endovascular procedure and 21/45 (46.7%) received an acute treatment. For patients treated with thrombectomy, the median time from first medical contact to groin puncture was 101 min, with 8 of the 12 patients (66.7%) being discharged to home. CONCLUSIONS: We have presented a pilot study showing that severe hemiparesis or hemiplegia may be a reasonable prehospital tool in recognizing patients requiring endovascular treatment. Patients being identified earlier may be treated faster and potentially improve outcomes. Further prospective controlled studies are required to assess the impact on outcomes and cost effectiveness using this methodology.

ASPECTS decay during inter-facility transfer predicts patient outcomes in endovascular reperfusion for ischemic stroke: a unique assessment of dynamic physiologic change over time.

BACKGROUND: Pretreatment Alberta Stroke Program Early CT Scores (ASPECTS) is associated with clinical outcomes. The rate of decline between subsequent images, however, may be more predictive of outcomes as it integrates time and physiology. METHODS: A cohort of patients transferred from six primary stroke centers and treated with intra-arterial therapy (IAT) was retrospectively studied. Absolute ASPECTS decay was defined as ((ASPECTS First CT-ASPECTS Second CT)/hours elapsed between images). A logistic regression model was performed to determine if the rate of ASPECTS decay predicted good outcomes at 90 days (modified Rankin Scale score of 0-2). RESULTS: 106 patients with a mean age of 66±14 years and a median National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale score of 19 (IQR 15-23) were analyzed. Median time between initial CT at the outside hospital to repeat CT at our facility was 2.7 h (IQR 2.0-3.6). Patients with good outcomes had lower rates of absolute ASPECTS decay compared with those who did not (0.14±0.23 score/h vs 0.49±0.39 score/h; p<0.001). In multivariable modeling, the absolute rate of ASPECTS decay (OR 0.043; 95% CI 0.004 to 0.471; p=0.01) was a stronger predictor of good patient outcome than static pretreatment ASPECTS obtained before IAT (OR 0.64; 95% CI 0.38 to 1.04; p=0.075). In practical terms, every 1 unit increase in ASPECTS decline per hour correlates with a 23-fold lower probability of a good outcome. CONCLUSIONS: Patients with faster rates of ASPECTS decay during inter-facility transfers are associated with worse clinical outcomes. This value may reflect the rate of physiological infarct expansion and thus serve as a tool in patient selection for IAT.