The Neurocritical Care Society Gender Parity Analysis in Grants and Recognition Awards.

BACKGROUND: Several recent studies across the field of medicine have indicated gender disparity in the reception of prestigious awards and research grants, placing women in medicine at a distinct disadvantage. Gender disparity has been observed in neurology, critical care medicine and within various professional societies. In this study, we have examined the longitudinal trends of gender parity in awards and grants within the Neurocritical Care Society (NCS). METHODS: A retrospective analysis was conducted of all available data longitudinally from 2004, when NCS first granted awards through 2019. We used self-identified gender in the membership roster to record gender for each individual. For individuals without recorded gender, we used a previously validated double verification method using a systematic web-based search. We collected data on six awards distributed by the NCS and divided these awards into two main categories: (1) scientific category: (a) Christine Wijman Young Investigator Award; (b) Best Scientific Abstract Award; (c) Fellowship Grant; (d) INCLINE Grant; and (2) non-scientific category: (a) Travel Grant; and (b) Presidential Citation. Available data were analyzed to evaluate longitudinal trends in awards using descriptive statistics and simple or multiple linear regression analyses, as appropriate. RESULTS: A total of 445 awards were granted between the years 2004 and 2019. Thirty-six awards were in the scientific category, while 409 awards were in the non-scientific category. Only 8% of women received NCS awards in the scientific awards category, whereas 44% of women received an award in the non-scientific category. Most notable in the scientific category are the Best Scientific Abstract Award and the Fellowship Grant, in which no woman has ever received an award to date, compared to 18 men between both awards. In contrast, women are well represented in the non-scientific awards category with an average of 5% increase per year in the number of women awardees. CONCLUSIONS: Our data reveal gender disparity, mainly for scientific or research awards. Prompt evaluation of the cause and further actions to address gender disparity in NCS grants and recognition awards is needed to establish gender equity in this area.

A Longitudinal Study of Gender Parity Trends of General Membership and Leadership in the Neurocritical Care Society between 2002 and 2019.

BACKGROUND: Several studies in critical care and neurology demonstrate women under-representation in professional societies; representation trends within the Neurocritical Care Society (NCS) are unknown. We examined longitudinal gender parity trends in membership and leadership within NCS. METHODS: A retrospective study of NCS membership and leadership rosters was conducted. To determine gender, self-reported binary gender was extracted. For individuals without recorded gender, a systematic Web-based search to identify usage of gender-specific pronouns in publicly available biographies was performed. According to previously published methods, available photographs were utilized to record presumed gender identification in the absence of available pronoun descriptors. We analyzed available data longitudinally from 2002 to 2019 and performed descriptive statistical and linear regression analyses. RESULTS: In overall membership, the proportion of women members demonstrated an average 11% increase between 2005 and 2018 (95% confidence interval (CI) - 8.1 to 30.1, p = 0.08). The proportion of women Board of Directors (BOD) members increased significantly over time to 50% in 2019. There was an increase in women Officers from 0% in the first 3 years (2002-2004) to 40% in 2019, with two women Presidents out of 17 from 2002 to 2019. For available Executive Committee rosters, there was a statistically significant nearly 3% increase per year (95% CI 1.5-4; p = 0.0007) in the proportion of women members. Rosters for Committee members and chairpersons were also incomplete, but in an analysis of the available data, there was a statistically significant increase of 5% per year analyzed (95% CI 0.5-9.7; p = 0.04) in the proportion of women Committee members. We also found a statistically significant 4.3% increase per year analyzed (95% CI 2.4-6.1; p = 0.003) in the proportion of women Committee chairpersons. CONCLUSIONS: This is the first study of longitudinal gender parity trends within neurocritical care. We report that from 2002 to 2019, the NCS has undergone a significant increase in women representation in general membership, committee membership, and leadership positions.

Thrombectomy after in-house stroke in the transfer population.

BACKGROUND: Patients with large-vessel occlusion (LVO) who initially present to a non-thrombectomy-capable center ("spoke") have worse outcomes than those presenting directly to a thrombectomy-capable center ("hub"). Furthermore, patients who suffer in-hospital strokes (IHS) suffer worse outcomes than those suffering strokes in the community. Data on patients who suffer IHS at a spoke hospital is lacking. We aim to characterize this particularly vulnerable population, define their outcomes, and compare them to patients who develop IHS at a hub institution. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed prospectively collected data from patients suffering an IHS at a spoke hospital who were then transferred to the hub hospital for endovascular therapy (EVT). We then compared outcomes of these patients under EVT after developing IHS at the hub institution. RESULTS: A total of 108 IHS patients met inclusion criteria: 91 (84%) at a spoke facility and 17 (16%) at the hub facility. Baseline characteristics and reason for hospital admission were comparable between the two groups. Time from imaging to IV-tPA administration (17 vs. 70 min, p = 0.01) and time to EVT (120 vs. 247 min, p = 0.001) were significantly shorter in the hub group. More patients had a 90 day-mRS of 0-3 in the hub group than the spoke group (57% vs 22%, p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Patients undergoing EVT after suffering IHS at a spoke hospital have significantly higher rates of poor outcomes compared to patients who suffer IHS at a hub hospital. Prolonged time delays in the initiation of IV-tPA and EVT represent areas of improvement.

Early management of acute cerebrovascular accident.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: Stroke is common and often presents as a neurologic emergency that requires rapid evaluation and treatment to minimize debilitation. Recent advances in therapy expanded time windows for intra-arterial thrombectomy in ischemic stroke, and surgical interventions for clot evacuation in large intracranial hemorrhage have recently proven feasible. This review discusses recent data regarding new therapeutic options in both ischemic and hemorrhagic stroke, notably in scenarios in which therapy was previously limited to supportive care. RECENT FINDINGS: Recent data show that intra-arterial therapy in ischemic stroke provides both benefit in outcomes and potential for further advancements in care. Therapeutic windows for endovascular treatment of a cerebral vessel occlusion now extend to 6 h, and recent data suggest this may increase further to 24 h. Intervention in hemorrhagic stroke remains limited to reversal of coagulopathy and hypertension; however, surgical techniques are underway and may prove beneficial in some cases. SUMMARY: Advancing therapeutics in ischemic and hemorrhagic stroke are changing acute care intervention and broadening potential candidates for what were once thought to be nonintervenable conditions. Execution of best practices in stroke will continue to evolve and will require understanding advanced imaging techniques, as well as selection criteria for procedural and surgical interventions.

Super Refractory Status Epilepticus Improved After Emergency Use of Ganaxolone: Case Report.

We present a case of a 34-year-old man with epilepsy who developed super refractory status epilepticus in the setting of COVID-19 pneumonia in whom aggressive therapy with multiple parenteral, enteral, and non-pharmacologic interventions were utilized without lasting improvement in clinical examination or electroencephalogram (EEG). The patient presented with multiple recurrences of electrographic status epilepticus throughout a prolonged hospital stay. Emergency use authorization was obtained for intravenous ganaxolone, a neuroactive steroid that is a potent modulator of both synaptic and extrasynaptic GABAA receptors. Following administration of intravenous ganaxolone according to a novel dosing paradigm, the patient showed sustained clinical and electrographic improvement.

Comparison of induction agents for rapid sequence intubation in refractory status epilepticus: A single-center retrospective analysis.

Endotracheal intubation, frequently required during management of refractory status epilepticus (RSE), can be facilitated by anesthetic medications; however, their effectiveness for RSE control is unknown. We performed a single-center retrospective review of patients admitted to a neurocritical care unit (NCCU) who underwent in-hospital intubation during RSE management. Patients intubated with propofol, ketamine, or benzodiazepines, termed anti-seizure induction (ASI), were compared to patients who received etomidate induction (EI). The primary endpoint was clinical or electrographic seizures within 12 h post-intubation. We estimated the association of ASI on post-intubation seizure using logistic regression. A sub-group of patients undergoing electroencephalography during intubation was identified to evaluate the immediate effect of ASI on RSE. We screened 697 patients admitted to the NCCU for RSE and identified 148 intubated in-hospital (n = 90 ASI, n = 58 EI). There was no difference in post-intubation seizure (26 % (n = 23) ASI, 29 % (n = 17) EI) in the cohort, however, there was increased RSE resolution with ASI in 24 patients with electrographic RSE during intubation (ASI: 61 % (n = 11/18) vs EI: 0 % (n = 0/6), p =.016). While anti-seizure induction did not appear to affect post-intubation seizure occurrence overall, a sub-group of patients undergoing electroencephalography during intubation had a higher incidence of seizure cessation, suggesting potential benefit in an enriched population.

Towards precision critical care management of blood pressure in hemorrhagic stroke patients using dynamic linear models.

Finding optimal blood pressure (BP) target and BP treatment after acute ischemic or hemorrhagic strokes is an area of controversy and a significant unmet need in the critical care of stroke victims. Numerous large prospective clinical trials have been done to address this question but have generated neutral or conflicting results. One major limitation that may have contributed to so many neutral or conflicting clinical trial results is the "one-size fit all" approach to BP targets, while the optimal BP target likely varies between individuals. We address this problem with the Acute Intervention Model of Blood Pressure (AIM-BP) framework: an individualized, human interpretable model of BP and its control in the acute care setting. The framework consists of two components: one, a model of BP homeostasis and the various effects that perturb it; and two, a parameter estimator that can learn clinically important model parameters on a patient by patient basis. By estimating the parameters of the AIM-BP model for a given patient, the effectiveness of antihypertensive medication can be quantified separately from the patient's spontaneous BP trends. We hypothesize that the AIM-BP is a sufficient framework for estimating parameters of a homeostasis perturbation model of a stroke patient's BP time course and the AIM-BP parameter estimator can do so as accurately and consistently as a state-of-the-art maximum likelihood estimation method. We demonstrate that this is the case in a proof of concept of the AIM-BP framework, using simulated clinical scenarios modeled on stroke patients from real world intensive care datasets.

An interdisciplinary approach to inhospital stroke improves stroke detection and treatment time.

BACKGROUND: Inhospital stroke (IHS) is associated with high morbidity and mortality, likely related to multiple factors, including delayed time to recognition, associated comorbidities, and initial care from non-stroke trained providers. We hypothesized that guided revision of a formalized 'stroke code' system can improve diagnosis and time to thrombolysis and thrombectomy. METHODS: IHS activations occurring at a comprehensive stroke center between 2013 and 2016 were retrospectively analyzed to guide revisions of an established stroke code protocol to improve provider communication and time to imaging, reduce stroke mimic rate, and improve the use of parallel processing. After protocol implementation, we prospectively collected data between 2016 and 2017 for comparison with the pre-implementation group, including diagnostic accuracy and relevant time points (code call to examination, examination to imaging, and imaging to intervention). We report descriptive statistics for comparison of patient characteristics and time metrics (time to imaging and reperfusion after IHS activation). Multivariable regression analysis was performed to identify independent predictors of stroke mimics and time metrics. RESULTS: There were 136 cases in the pre-implementation group and 69 in the post-implementation group. A reduction in stroke mimics (52% vs 33%, P=0.01) occurred after protocol initiation. Mean time to imaging after stroke code call was 7.6 min shorter (P=0.026) and mean time from imaging to acute reperfusion therapy was 45.7 vs 19.8 min (P=0.05) in the pre- versus the post-implementation group. CONCLUSION: Revision of an existing IHS protocol was associated with a lower rate of stroke mimics, and a shorter time to intravenous and intra-arterial intervention.

CD8-Positive T-Cell Leukoencephalitis With Astrocytopathy Clinically Presenting as Neuromyelitis Optica.

We describe a novel disease entity with the clinical and radiologic presentation of neuromyelitis optica (NMO) and widespread CD8-positive T-cell leukoencephalitis and astrocytopathy. The 59-year-old female patient had a complex 2-year neurological history that included early changes in cognition and memory, progressive lower extremity motor dysfunction, and multimodal sensory involvement. MRI of the spinal cord showed increased T2 signal in the central cord extending from C2 through T4. MRI of the brain showed symmetric radial enhancement in periventricular deep white matter without evidence of demyelinating lesions. The constellation of findings met clinical criteria for NMO. Steroid treatment was initiated with subjective improvement but she developed urosepsis and died at age 61 years. At autopsy, the spinal cord showed typical NMO findings but no evidence of complement deposition or neutrophil infiltration. There was diffuse CD8-positive T-cell infiltration and CD68-positive macrophage activation throughout subcortical white matter, optic chiasm, brainstem, and spinal cord. This was accompanied by marked astrocytopathy in all areas. Serum was negative for aquaporin-4 autoantibodies suggesting a nonhumoral basis of astrocyte damage. This first example of CD8-positive T-cell leukoencephalitis in a patient with a clinical presentation of NMO may explain the recalcitrance of some patients to therapies targeting humoral immunity.

Role of Pre-Morbid Factors and Exposure to Blast Mild Traumatic Brain Injury on Post-Traumatic Stress in United States Military Personnel.

Mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI), the signature injury of the recent wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, is a prevalent and potentially debilitating condition that is associated with symptoms of post-traumatic stress/post-traumatic stress disorder (PTS/PTSD). Prior mTBI, severity and type of injury (blast vs. non-blast), and baseline psychiatric illness are thought to impact mTBI outcomes. It is unclear if the severity of pre-morbid PTS/PTSD is a risk factor of post-injury levels of PTS and mTBI symptoms. The objective of the study was to examine predictors of post-injury PTS/PTSD, including pre-morbid PTS symptoms, and physical and cognitive symptoms in the sub-acute phase (1 week-3 months) following an acute mTBI. A retrospective review of medical records was performed of 276 servicemen assigned to the United States Army Special Operations Command referred for mTBI evaluation between December 2009 and March 2011. Post-Concussion Symptom Scale and PTSD Checklist scores were captured pre- and post-injury. A total of 276 records were reviewed. Pre-morbid and post-injury data were available for 91% (251/276). Of the 54% (136/251) of personnel with mTBI, 29% (39/136) had positive radiology findings and 11% (15/136) met criteria for clinical PTS symptoms at baseline. Logistic regression analysis found baseline PTS symptoms predicted personnel who met clinical levels of PTSD. Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis revealed that baseline PTS (p = 0.001), baseline mTBI symptoms (p = 0.001), and positive radiology (magnetic resonance imaging or computed tomography) findings for complicated mTBI (p = 0.02) accurately identified personnel with clinical levels of PTSD following mTBI. Years of military service, combat deployment status, age, and injury mechanism (blast vs. non-blast) were not associated with increased risk of PTS following mTBI. Pre-morbid PTS symptoms are associated with an increased risk for clinical levels of PTS following a subsequent mTBI. Symptom severity and positive radiologic findings may amplify this risk. At-risk personnel may benefit from early identification and intervention.