Urban-rural inequalities in IV thrombolysis for acute ischemic stroke: A nationwide study.

INTRODUCTION: Rural residency has been associated with lower reperfusion treatment rates for acute ischemic stroke in many countries. We aimed to explore urban-rural differences in IV thrombolysis rates in a small country with universal health care, and short transport times to stroke units. PATIENTS AND METHODS: In this nationwide cohort study, adult ischemic stroke patients registered in the Danish Stroke Registry (DSR) between 2015 and 2020 were included. The exposure was defined by residence rurality. Data from the DSR, Statistics Denmark, and the Danish Health Data Authority, were linked on the individual level using the Civil Registration Number. Adjusted treatment rates were calculated by balancing baseline characteristics using inverse probability of treatment weights. RESULTS: Among the included 56,175 patients, prehospital delays were shortest for patients residing in capital municipalities (median 4.7 h), and longest for large town residents (median 7.1 h). Large town residents were predominantly admitted directly to a comprehensive stroke center (98.5%), whereas 30.9% of capital residents were admitted to a hospital with no reperfusion therapy available (non-RT unit). Treatment rates were similar among all non-rural residents (18.5%-18.7%), but slightly lower among rural residents (17.2% [95% CI 16.5-17.8]). After adjusting for age, sex, immigrant status, and educational attainment, rural residents reached treatment rates comparable to capital and large town residents at 18.5% (95% CI 17.7-19.4). DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: While treatment rates varied minimally by urban-rural residency, substantial differences in median prehospital delay and admission to non-RT units underscored marked urban-rural differences in potential obstacles to reperfusion therapies.

Temporal trends in lifetime risks of atrial fibrillation and its complications between 2000 and 2022: Danish, nationwide, population based cohort study.

OBJECTIVES: To examine how the lifetime risks of atrial fibrillation and of complications after atrial fibrillation changed over time. DESIGN: Danish, nationwide, population based cohort study. SETTING: Population of Denmark from 1 January 2000 to 31 December 2022. PARTICIPANTS: 3.5 million individuals (51.7% women and 48.3% men) who did not have atrial fibrillation at 45 years of age or older were followed up until incident atrial fibrillation, migration, death, or end of follow-up, whichever came first. All 362 721 individuals with incident atrial fibrillation (46.4% women and 53.6% men), but with no prevalent complication, were further followed up until incident heart failure, stroke, or myocardial infarction. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Lifetime risk of atrial fibrillation and lifetime risks of complications after atrial fibrillation over two prespecified periods (2000-10 v 2011-22). RESULTS: The lifetime risk of atrial fibrillation increased from 24.2% in 2000-10 to 30.9% in 2011-22 (difference 6.7% (95% confidence interval 6.5% to 6.8%)). After atrial fibrillation, the most frequent complication was heart failure with a lifetime risk of 42.9% in 2000-10 and 42.1% in 2011-22 (-0.8% (-3.8% to 2.2%)). Individuals with atrial fibrillation lost 14.4 years with no heart failure. The lifetime risks of stroke and of myocardial infarction after atrial fibrillation decreased slightly between the two periods, from 22.4% to 19.9% for stroke (-2.5% (-4.2% to -0.7%)) and from 13.7% to 9.8% for myocardial infarction (-3.9% (-5.3% to -2.4%). No evidence was reported of a differential decrease between men and women. CONCLUSION: Lifetime risk of atrial fibrillation increased over two decades of follow-up. In individuals with atrial fibrillation, about two in five developed heart failure and one in five had a stroke over their remaining lifetime after atrial fibrillation diagnosis, with no or only small improvement over time. Stroke risks and heart failure prevention strategies are needed for people with atrial fibrillation.

Prevalence and impact of SARS-CoV-2 infection among patients with acute ischaemic stroke: a nationwide register-based cohort study in Denmark.

OBJECTIVES: An increased risk of stroke has been reported among patients with COVID-19 caused by SARS-CoV-2. We aimed to investigate the nationwide prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 among patients with acute ischaemic stroke and to study the impact on stroke severity, quality of care and mortality on an individual patient level. DESIGN: This was a nationwide register-based cohort study. SETTING: We used data from several Danish registers which were linked at an individual patient level using the unique civil registration number assigned to all Danish citizens. Patients were identified from the Danish Stroke Registry and information on SARS-CoV-2 infection status was collected from the Danish National COVID-19 Registry. Concurrent SARS-CoV-2 infection was defined as a positive PCR test within 31 days prior to, and 1 day after, stroke admission. Information on comorbidity was collected from the Danish National Patient Registry and information on vital status was collected from the Danish Civil Registration System. PARTICIPANTS: A total of 11 502 patients admitted with acute ischaemic stroke from 10 March 2020 to 31 May 2021 were included in the study. RESULTS: Among the included patients, the majority (84.6%) were tested for SARS-CoV-2, but only 68 had a positive test. These patients were more prone to have atrial fibrillation and were more often treated with reperfusion therapy. They had a significantly increased risk of severe stroke (adjusted relative risk (aRR) 1.93, 95% CI: 1.22 to 3.04) and a significantly increased 30-day mortality risk (aRR 2.29, 95% CI: 1.19 to 4.39). There was no difference in the proportion of patients fulfilling relevant performance measures on quality of care. CONCLUSION: In this nationwide study, only 0.6% of patients with acute ischaemic stroke were tested positive for a concurrent SARS-CoV-2 infection. The patients with SARS-CoV-2 presented with more severe strokes.

Oral anticoagulation therapy initiation in patients with atrial fibrillation in relation to world region of origin: a register-based nationwide study.

BACKGROUND: Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most common sustained arrhythmia and results in a high risk of stroke. The number of immigrants is increasing globally, but little is known about potential differences in AF care across migrant populations. AIM: To investigate if initiation of oral anticoagulation therapy (OAC) differs for patients with incident AF in relation to country of origin. METHODS: A nationwide register-based study covering 1999-2017. AF was defined as a first-time diagnosis of AF and a high risk of stroke. Stroke risk was defined according to guidelines from the European Society of Cardiology (ESC). Poisson regression adjusted for sex, age, socioeconomic position and comorbidity was made to compute incidence rate ratios (IRR) for initiation of OAC. RESULTS: The AF population included 254 586 individuals of Danish origin, 6673 of Western origin and 3757 of non-Western origin. Overall, OAC was initiated within -30/+90 days relative to the AF diagnosis in 50.3% of individuals of Danish origin initiated OAC, 49.6% of Western origin and 44.5% of non-Western origin. Immigrants from non-Western countries had significantly lower adjusted IRR of initiating OAC according to all ESC guidelines compared with patients of Danish origin. The adjusted IRRs ranged from 0.73 (95% CI: 0.66 to 0.80) following the launch of the 2010 ESC guideline to 0.89 (95% CI: 0.82 to 0.97) following the launch of the 2001 ESC guideline. CONCLUSION: Patients with AF with a high risk of stroke of non-Western origin have persistently experienced a lower chance of initiating OAC compared with patients of Danish origin during the last decades.

Birth cohort effects on diagnosed atrial fibrillation incidence: nationwide cohort study from 1980 to 2018.

BACKGROUND: The incidence of atrial fibrillation (AF) shows substantial temporal trends, but the contribution of birth cohort effects is unknown. These effects refer to the relationship between birth year and the likelihood of developing AF. We aimed to assess trends in cumulative incidence of diagnosed AF across birth cohorts and to disentangle the effects of age, birth cohort and calendar period by using age-period-cohort analyses. METHODS: In a Danish nationwide population-based cohort study, 4.7 million individuals were selected at a given index age (45, 55, 65 and 75 years) free of AF and followed up for diagnosed AF. For each index age, we assessed trends in 10-year cumulative incidence of AF across six 5-year birth cohorts. An age-period-cohort model was estimated using Poisson regression with constrained spline functions collapsing data into 1-year intervals across ages and calendar years. RESULTS: Cumulative incidence of AF diagnosis increased across birth cohorts for all index ages (ptrend<0.001). Compared with the first birth cohort, the diagnosed AF incidence rate ratio in the last birth cohort was 3.0 (95% CI 2.9 to 3.2) for index age 45 years, 2.9 (2.8 to 3.0) for 55 years, 2.8 (2.7 to 2.8) for 65 years and 2.7 (2.6 to 2.7) for 75 years. Age-period-cohort analyses showed substantial birth cohort effects independent of age, with no clear period effect. Compared with individuals born in 1930, the diagnosed AF incidence rate was 0.125 smaller among individuals born in 1885 and was four times larger among individuals born in 1975. CONCLUSION: Substantial birth cohort effects, independent of age and calendar period, influence trends in diagnosed AF incidence.

Stroke and Risk of Epilepsy: A Danish Nationwide Register-Based Study.

BACKGROUND: Stroke is associated with a risk of epilepsy, but associations with age, sex, stroke type and severity, time trends, and mortality are uncertain. We studied the risk of epilepsy after stroke while accounting for sex, age, stroke types and severity, calendar time, and death. METHODS: This was a prospective nationwide register-based, matched cohort study of patients admitted with a validated first stroke in Denmark from April 1, 2004, to December 16, 2018, excluding those with prior epilepsy. Patients with stroke were matched 10:1 on age, sex, and calendar time with reference people without prior epilepsy or stroke. We estimated the cumulative incidence of an epilepsy diagnosis in the Danish National Patient Registry (International Classification of Diseases Tenth Revision: G40) with death as a competing risk using competing risk regression and estimated adjusted hazard ratios by Cox regression models. RESULTS: We identified 101 034 patients with stroke (46.5% female; mean age, 70.4 years) who survived 14 days after stroke along with 1 010 333 matched reference people. Two years after the stroke, the cumulative incidence of epilepsy was 3.0% (95% CI, 2.9-3.2) after ischemic stroke and 8.6% (95% CI, 8.0-9.2) after intracerebral hemorrhage versus 0.7% (95% CI, 0.7-0.7) in the matched references. Compared with the reference population, the 2-year hazard ratio of epilepsy was 21.7 (95% CI, 20.3-23.2) after ischemic stroke and 61.3 (95% CI, 51.1-73.4) after intracerebral hemorrhage. The risk of epilepsy increased with stroke severity; the 2-year cumulative incidence of epilepsy was 10.5% (95% CI, 9.5-11.4) for very severe ischemic stroke and 13.1% (95% CI, 11.1-15.1) after very severe intracerebral hemorrhage. CONCLUSIONS: In this population-based study of patients with validated stroke, the absolute and relative risk estimates of poststroke epilepsy were lower compared with previous studies. Reasons for the lower risk estimates include accounting for the high mortality associated with stroke, which had a significant impact on risk especially for severe stroke.

Effect of Remote Ischemic Conditioning in Ischemic Stroke Subtypes: A Post Hoc Subgroup Analysis From the RESIST Trial.

BACKGROUND: Remote ischemic conditioning (RIC) is a simple and noninvasive procedure that has proved to be safe and feasible in numerous smaller clinical trials. Mixed results have been found in recent large randomized controlled trials. This is a post hoc subgroup analysis of the RESIST trial (Remote Ischemic Conditioning in Patients With Acute Stroke), investigating the effect of RIC in different acute ischemic stroke etiologies, and whether an effect was modified by treatment adherence. METHODS: Eligible patients were adults (aged ≥18 years), independent in activities of daily living, who had prehospital stroke symptoms with a duration of less than 4 hours. They were randomized to RIC or sham. The RIC treatment protocol consisted of 5 cycles with 5 minutes of cuff inflation alternating with 5 minutes with a deflated cuff. Acceptable treatment adherence was defined as when at least 80% of planned RIC cycles were received. The analysis was performed using the entire range (shift analysis) of the modified Rankin Scale (ordinal logistic regression). RESULTS: A total of 698 had acute ischemic stroke, 253 (36%) were women, and the median (interquartile range) age was 73 (63-80) years. Median (interquartile range) overall adherence to RIC/sham was 91% (68%-100%). In patients with a stroke due to cerebral small vessel disease, who were adherent to treatment, RIC was associated with improved functional outcome, and the odds ratio for a shift to a lower score on the modified Rankin Scale was 2.54 (1.03-6.25); P=0.042. The association remained significant after adjusting for potential confounders. No significant associations were found with other stroke etiologies, and the overall test for interaction was not statistically significant (χ2, 4.33, P=0.23). CONCLUSIONS: In patients with acute ischemic stroke due to cerebral small vessel disease, who maintained good treatment adherence, RIC was associated with improved functional outcomes at 90 days. These results should only serve as a hypothesis-generating for future trials. REGISTRATION: URL: https://www.clinicaltrials.gov; Unique identifier: NCT03481777.

Rasch analysis of a patient-reported outcome measure for self-perceived health among psychiatric patients in Denmark.

BACKGROUND: Patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) are valuable and necessary tools for establishing and maintaining patient-centred healthcare. The PRO-Psychiatry initiative was primarily initiated to support the patient's voice in treatment decision-making and secondarily to monitor patient-perceived quality of care. The result of the initiative is a patient-reported instrument developed in collaboration between patients and clinicians. We aimed to validate the PROM developed for measuring self-perceived health among psychiatric patients in North Denmark Region, in terms of internal consistency, criterion validity and responsiveness. METHOD: Patients in contact with a psychiatric hospital in the North Denmark Region from September 2018 to March 2021 were included in the study. The PROM constitutes a scale of 17 items covering various aspects of self-perceived health including well-being (7 items), lack of well-being (5 items) and social functioning (5 items), where the former domain entails the WHO-5 Well-Being Index. The potential range of the total scale score is 0-85. We applied McDonald's omega, average inter-item correlation (AIIC) and differential item functioning (DIF). In addition, we used mixed effects analyses to estimate temporal correlations. The instrument was compared with self-rated overall mental and psychiatric health. RESULTS: The patient population consisted of 1132 unique patients and a total of 2476 responses corresponding to one response per patient pathway. McDonald's omega was found to be 0.92 (95% CI 0.92 to 0.93), while the AIIC was found to be 0.42 (95% CI 0.39 to 0.44). For DIF, the largest systematic variation resulted in a maximum difference of 2.3 points on the total score when adjusting for the latent trait and was found when comparing initial measurements with follow-up measurements. The correlation between the total score and the outcomes regarding overall physical and mental health was 0.52 (95% CI 0.48 to 0.56) and 0.74 (95% CI 0.72 to 0.76). Similar correlations were found for the corresponding changes over time. CONCLUSION: The scale showed high consistency and little systematic variation between the comparison groups. The concurrent correlations and analyses of responsiveness coincided with the prespecified hypotheses. Overall, we deem the Danish PRO-Psychiatry instrument to possess suitable psychometric properties for measuring self-perceived health among a psychiatric population.

Disparities in prehospital and emergency surgical care among patients with perforated ulcers and a history of mental illness: a nationwide cohort study.

PURPOSE: To compare patients with and without a history of mental illness on process and outcome measures in relation to prehospital and emergency surgical care for patients with perforated ulcer. METHODS: A nationwide registry-based cohort study of patients undergoing emergency surgery for perforated ulcer. We used data from the Danish Prehospital Database 2016-2017 and the Danish Emergency Surgery Registry 2004-2018 combined with data from other Danish databases. Patients were categorized according to severity of mental health history. RESULTS: We identified 4.767 patients undergoing emergency surgery for perforated ulcer. Among patients calling the EMS with no history of mental illness, 51% were identified with abdominal pain when calling the EMS compared to 31% and 25% among patients with a history of moderate and major mental illness, respectively. Median time from hospital arrival to surgery was 6.0 h (IQR: 3.6;10.7). Adjusting for age, sex and comorbidity, patients with a history of major mental illness underwent surgery 46 min (95% CI: 4;88) later compared to patients with no history of mental illness. Median number of days-alive-and-out-of-hospital at 90-day follow-up was 67 days (IQR: 0;83). Adjusting for age, sex and comorbidity, patients with a history of major mental illness had 9 days (95% CI: 4;14) less alive and out-of-hospital at 90-day follow-up. CONCLUSION: One-third of the population had a history of mental illness or vulnerability. Patients with a history of major mental illness were less likely to be identified with abdominal pain if calling the EMS prior to arrival. They had longer delays from hospital arrival to surgery and higher mortality.

Incidence of atrial fibrillation and flutter in Denmark in relation to country of origin: a nationwide register-based study.

BACKGROUND: Atrial fibrillation and flutter (AF) is the most common sustained arrhythmia with an increasing prevalence in Western countries. However, little is known about AF among immigrants compared to non-immigrants. AIM: To examine the incidence of hospital-diagnosed AF according to country of origin. METHOD: Immigrants were defined as individuals born outside Denmark by parents born outside Denmark. AF was defined as first-time diagnosis of AF. All individuals were followed from the age of 45 years from 1998 to 2017. The analyses were adjusted for sex, age, comorbidity, contact with the general practitioner and socioeconomic variables. Adjustment was conducted using standardised morbidity ratio weights, standardised to the Danish population in a marginal structural model. RESULTS: The study population consisted of 3,489,730 Danish individuals free of AF and 108,914 immigrants free of AF who had emigrated from the 10 most represented countries. A total of 323,005 individuals of Danish origin had an incident hospital diagnosis of AF, among the immigrants 7,300 developed AF. Adjusted hazard rate ratios (HRRs) of AF for immigrants from Iran (0.48 [95%CI:0.35;0.64]), Turkey (0.74 [95%CI:0.67;0.82]) and Bosnia-Herzegovina (0.42 [95%CI:0.22;0.79]) were low compared with Danish individuals. Immigrants from Sweden, Germany and Norway had an adjusted HRR of 1.13 [95%CI:1.03;1.23], 1.12 [95%CI:1.05;1.18] and 1.11 [95%CI:1.03;1.21], respectively (Danish individuals as reference). CONCLUSIONS: Substantial variation in the incidence of hospital-diagnosed AF according to country of origin was observed. The results may reflect true biological differences but could also reflect barriers to AF diagnosis for immigrants. Further efforts are warranted to determine the underlying mechanisms.

Standard vs. targeted oxygen therapy prehospitally for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (STOP-COPD): study protocol for a randomised controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: A high concentration of inspired supplemental oxygen may possibly cause hypercapnia and acidosis and increase mortality in patients with acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (AECOPD). Even so, patients with AECOPD are being treated with high oxygen flow rates when receiving inhalation drugs in the prehospital setting. A cluster-randomised controlled trial found that reduced oxygen delivery by titrated treatment reduced mortality-a result supported by observational studies-but the results have never been reproduced. In the STOP-COPD trial, we investigate the effect of titrated oxygen delivery compared with usual care consisting of high flow oxygen delivery in patients with AECOPD in the prehospital setting. METHODS: In this randomised controlled trial, patients will be blinded to allocation. Patients with suspected AECOPD (n = 1888) attended by the emergency medical service (EMS) and aged > 40 years will be allocated randomly to either standard treatment or titrated oxygen, targeting a blood oxygen saturation of 88-92% during inhalation therapy. The trial will be conducted in the Central Denmark Region and include all ambulance units. The power to detect a 3% 30-day mortality risk difference is 80%. The trial is approved as an emergency trial. Hence, EMS providers will include patients without prior consent. DISCUSSION: The results will provide evidence on whether titrated oxygen delivery outperforms standard high flow oxygen when used to nebulise inhaled bronchodilators in AECOPD treatment. The trial is designed to ensure unselected inclusion of patients with AECOPD needing nebulised bronchodilators-a group of patients that receives high oxygen fractions when treated in the prehospital setting where the only compressed gas is generally pure oxygen. Conducting this trial, we aim to improve treatment for people with AECOPD while reducing their 30-day mortality. TRIAL REGISTRATION: European Union Clinical Trials (EUCT) number: 2022-502003-30-00 (authorised 06/12/2022), ClinicalTrials.gov number: NCT05703919 (released 02/02/2023), Universal trial number: U1111-1278-2162.

Social determinants of health and clinical outcomes among patients with atrial fibrillation. Evidence from a global federated health research network.

BACKGROUND: Few studies have investigated the role of SDoH in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF). AIM: To investigate the relationship between SDoH and adverse events in a large multinational AF cohort. DESIGN: Retrospective study utilizing a global federated health research network (TriNetX). METHODS: Patients with AF were categorized as socially deprived defined according to ICD codes based on three SDoHs: i) extreme poverty; ii) unemployment; iii) and/or problems related with living alone. The outcomes were the five-year risk of a composite outcomes of all-cause death, hospitalization, ischemic heart disease, stroke, heart failure, or severe ventricular arrhythmias. Cox-regression was used to compute hazard rate ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) following 1:1 propensity score matching (PSM). RESULTS: The study included 24,631 socially deprived (68.8 ± 16.0 years; females 51.8%) and 2,462,092 non-deprived AF patients (75.5 ± 13.1 years; females 43.8%). Before PSM, socially deprived patients had a higher risk of the composite outcome (HR 1.9, 95%CI 1.87-1.93), all-cause death (HR 1.34, 95%CI 1.28-1.39), hospitalization (HR 2.01, 95%CI 1.98-2.04), ischemic heart disease (HR 1.67, 95%CI 1.64-1.70), stroke (HR 2.60, 95%CI 2.51-2.64), heart failure (HR 1.91, 95%CI 1.86-1.96) and severe ventricular arrhythmias (HR 1.83, 95%CI 1.76-1.90) compared to non-deprived AF patients. The PSM based hazard ratios for the primary composite outcome were 1.54 (95%CI 1.49-1.60) for the unemployed AF patients; 1.39 (95%CI 1.31-1.47) for patients with extreme poverty or with low income; and 1.42 (95%CI 1.37-1.47) for those with problems related with living alone. CONCLUSIONS: In patients with AF, social deprivation is associated with an increased risk of death and adverse cardiac events. The presence of possible unmeasured bias associated with the retrospective design requires confirmation in future prospective studies.

Regional variation in incidence and prognosis of acute kidney injury.

BACKGROUND: Examining regional variation in acute kidney injury (AKI) and associated outcomes may reveal inequalities and possibilities for optimization of the quality of care. Using the Danish medical databases, we examined regional variation in the incidence, follow-up, and prognosis of AKI in Denmark. METHODS: Patients with one or more AKI episodes in 2017 were identified using population-based creatinine measurements covering all Danish residents. Crude and sex-and-age-standardized incidence rates of AKI were estimated using census statistics for each municipality. Adjusted hazard ratios (aHR) of chronic kidney disease (CKD), all-cause death, biochemical follow-up, and outpatient contact with a nephrology department after AKI were estimated across geographical regions and categories of municipalities, accounting for differences in demographics, comorbidities, medication use, lifestyle and social factors, and baseline kidney function. RESULTS: We identified 63 382 AKI episodes in 58 356 adults in 2017. The regional standardized AKI incidence rates ranged from 12.9 to 14.9 per 1 000 person-years. Compared with the Capital Region of Denmark, the aHRs across regions ranged from 1.04 to 1.25 for CKD, from 0.97 to 1.04 for all-cause death, from 1.09 to 1.15 for biochemical follow-up, and from 1.08 to 1.49 for outpatient contact with a nephrology department after AKI. Similar variations were found across municipality categories. CONCLUSIONS: Within the uniform Danish healthcare system, we found modest regional variation in AKI incidence. The mortality after AKI was similar; however, CKD, biochemical follow-up, and nephrology follow-up after AKI varied across regions and municipality categories.

The Danish Atrial Fibrillation Registry: A Multidisciplinary National Pragmatic Initiative for Monitoring and Supporting Quality of Care Based on Data Retrieved from Administrative Registries.

Aim: The Danish Atrial Fibrillation (AF) Registry monitors and supports improvement of quality of care for all AF patients in Denmark. This report describes the registry's administrative and organizational structure, data sources, data flow, data analyses, annual reporting, and feedback between the registry, clinicians, and the administrative system. We also report the selection process of the quality indicators and the temporal trends in results from 2017-2021. Methods and Results: The Danish AF Registry aims for complete registration and monitoring of care for all patients diagnosed with AF in Denmark. Administrative registries provide data on contacts to general practice, contacts to private cardiology practice, hospital contacts, medication prescriptions, updated vital status information, and biochemical test results. The Danish Stroke Registry provides information on stroke events. From 2017 to 2021, the proportion with a reported echocardiography among incident AF patients increased from 39.9% (95% CI: 39.3-40.6) to 82.6% (95% CI: 82.1-83.1). The initiation of oral anticoagulant therapy among patients with incident AF and a CHA2DS2-VASc score of ≥1 in men and ≥2 in women increased from 85.3% (95% CI: 84.6-85.9) to 90.4% (95% CI: 89.9-91.0). The 1-year and 2-year persistence increased from 85.2% (95% CI: 84.5-85.9) to 88.7% (95% CI: 88.0-89.3), and from 85.4% (95% CI: 84.7-86.2) to 88.2% (95% CI: 87.5-88.8), respectively. The 1-year risk of ischemic stroke among prevalent patients with AF decreased from 0.88% (95% CI: 0.83-0.93) to 0.71% (95% CI: 0.66-0.75). Variation in clinical performance between the five administrative Danish regions was reduced. Conclusion: Continuous nationwide monitoring of quality indicators for AF originating from administrative registries is feasible and supportive of improvements of quality of care.

Electrical energy by electrode placement for cardioversion of atrial fibrillation: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

OBJECTIVE: Electrode patch position may not be critical for success when cardioverting atrial fibrillation (AF), but the relevance of applied electrical energy is unclarified. Our objective was to perform a meta-analysis of randomised trials to examine the dose-response relation between energy level and cardioversion success by electrode position in elective cardioversion. METHODS: We searched PubMed, Embase, The Cochrane Library, Google Scholar and Scopus Citations. Inclusion criteria were randomised controlled trials using biphasic shock waves and self-adhesive patches, and publication date from 2000 to 2023. We used random-effects dose-response models to meta-analyse the relation between energy level and cardioversion success by anterolateral and anteroposterior position. Random-effects models estimated pooled risk ratios (RR) for cardioversion success after the first and the final shocks between the two electrode positions. RESULTS: We included five randomised controlled trials (N=1078). After the first low-energy shock, the electrode position was not significantly associated with the likelihood of successful cardioversion (pooled RR anterolateral vs anteroposterior placement 1.28, 95% CI 0.93 to 1.76, with considerable heterogeneity). After a high-energy final shock, there was no evidence of an association between the electrode position and the cumulative chance of cardioversion success (pooled RR anterolateral vs anteroposterior 1.05, 95% CI 0.97 to 1.14). Regardless of electrode position, cardioversion success was significantly less likely with shock energy levels < 200J compared with 200J. CONCLUSION: Evidence from contemporary randomised trials suggests that higher level of electrical energy is associated with higher conversion rate when cardioverting AF with a biphasic shockwave. Positioning of electrodes can be based on convenience.

Multi-morbid patients with co-existing mental and physical illness.

This review investigates the mortality gap that exists between people with or people without mental illness. Poor physical health is the leading cause of excess mortality among people with mental illness. Mental disorders increase the risk of developing a broad range of physical diseases and the risk of death caused by somatic diseases is increased. Also, mental disorder is associated with less optimal treatment in the somatic healthcare system, which is also evident within a broad spectrum of somatic diseases. The role of structural factors such as the design of the healthcare system and stigma are developing.

Remote Ischemic Conditioning for Acute Stroke: The RESIST Randomized Clinical Trial.

Importance: Despite some promising preclinical and clinical data, it remains uncertain whether remote ischemic conditioning (RIC) with transient cycles of limb ischemia and reperfusion is an effective treatment for acute stroke. Objective: To evaluate the effect of RIC when initiated in the prehospital setting and continued in the hospital on functional outcome in patients with acute stroke. Design, Setting, and Participants: This was a randomized clinical trial conducted at 4 stroke centers in Denmark that included 1500 patients with prehospital stroke symptoms for less than 4 hours (enrolled March 16, 2018, to November 11, 2022; final follow-up, February 3, 2023). Intervention: The intervention was delivered using an inflatable cuff on 1 upper extremity (RIC cuff pressure, ≤200 mm Hg [n = 749] and sham cuff pressure, 20 mm Hg [n = 751]). Each treatment application consisted of 5 cycles of 5 minutes of cuff inflation followed by 5 minutes of cuff deflation. Treatment was started in the ambulance and repeated at least once in the hospital and then twice daily for 7 days among a subset of participants. Main Outcomes and Measures: The primary end point was improvement in functional outcome measured as a shift across the modified Rankin Scale (mRS) score (range, 0 [no symptoms] to 6 [death]) at 90 days in the target population with a final diagnosis of ischemic or hemorrhagic stroke. Results: Among 1500 patients who were randomized (median age, 71 years; 591 women [41%]), 1433 (96%) completed the trial. Of these, 149 patients (10%) were diagnosed with transient ischemic attack and 382 (27%) with a stroke mimic. In the remaining 902 patients with a target diagnosis of stroke (737 [82%] with ischemic stroke and 165 [18%] with intracerebral hemorrhage), 436 underwent RIC and 466 sham treatment. The median mRS score at 90 days was 2 (IQR, 1-3) in the RIC group and 1 (IQR, 1-3) in the sham group. RIC treatment was not significantly associated with improved functional outcome at 90 days (odds ratio [OR], 0.95; 95% CI, 0.75 to 1.20, P = .67; absolute difference in median mRS score, -1; -1.7 to -0.25). In all randomized patients, there were no significant differences in the number of serious adverse events: 169 patients (23.7%) in the RIC group with 1 or more serious adverse events vs 175 patients (24.3%) in the sham group (OR, 0.97; 95% CI, 0.85 to 1.11; P = .68). Upper extremity pain during treatment and/or skin petechia occurred in 54 (7.2%) in the RIC group and 11 (1.5%) in the sham group. Conclusions and Relevance: RIC initiated in the prehospital setting and continued in the hospital did not significantly improve functional outcome at 90 days in patients with acute stroke. Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT03481777.

Intravenous thrombolysis for acute ischemic stroke is associated with lower risk of post-stroke dementia: A nationwide cohort study.

INTRODUCTION: Dementia after stroke is common and is a great concern for patients and their caregivers. The objective was to investigate if intravenous thrombolysis (IVT) for acute ischemic stroke (AIS) was associated with lower risk of dementia after stroke. PATIENTS AND METHODS: When IVT was introduced in Denmark, not all eligible patients were treated due to restricted access. We conducted a nationwide register-based cohort study of all patients with AIS in Denmark from 2004 to 2011. IVT-treated patients were propensity score-matched with comparable non-treated patients. Cox proportional hazards regression was used to estimate the hazard ratio (HR) for all-cause and vascular dementia 2, 5, and 10 years after stroke. RESULTS: Of the 5919 patients eligible for the study, 2305 IVT-treated patients were propensity score-matched with 2305 non-treated patients. Mean (SD) age was 66.6 (13.3) and 61.2% were male. Rate of all-cause dementia was lower for the IVT-treated 2 years (8.4/1000 person years (PY) vs 13.6/1000 PY, HR 0.63 (0.40-0.99)) and 5 years after stroke (7.3/1000 PY vs 11.4/1000 PY, HR 0.65 (0.46-0.91)). 10 years after stroke, the rates of all-cause dementia remained in favor of IVT (8.0/1000 PY vs 9.8/1000 PY, HR 0.83 (0.64-1.07)). IVT-treated had lower rates of vascular dementia 2 years (2.4/1000 PY vs 7.4/1000 PY, HR 0.33 (0.15-0.71)), 5 years (2.3/1000 PY vs 6.2/1000 PY, HR 0.38 (0.23-0.65)), and 10 years after stroke (3.0/1000 PY vs 5.4/1000 PY, HR 0.56 (0.38-0.81)). CONCLUSION: IVT treatment was associated with lower long-term risk of both vascular and all-cause dementia after AIS.

Education level and the use of coronary computed tomography, functional testing, coronary angiography, revascularization, and outcomes-a 10-year Danish, nationwide, registry-based follow-up study.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Coronary computed tomography angiography (CCTA) can guide downstream preventive treatment and improve patient prognosis, but its use in relation to education level remains unexplored. METHODS: This nationwide register-based cohort study assessed all residents in Denmark between 2008-2018 without coronary artery disease (CAD) and 50-80 years of age (n = 1 469 724). Residents were divided according to four levels of education: low, lower-mid, higher-mid, and high. Outcomes were CCTA, functional testing, invasive coronary angiography (ICA), revascularization, and major adverse cardiovascular and cerebrovascular events (MACCE). RESULTS: Individuals with the lowest education level underwent CCTA (absolute risk [AR] 3.95% individuals aged ≥ 50-59, AR 3.62% individuals aged ≥ 60-69, AR 2.19% individuals aged ≥ 70-80) less often than individuals of lower-mid (AR 4.16%, AR 3.90%, AR 2.41%), higher-mid (AR 4.38%, AR 4.30%, AR 2.45%) and highest education level (AR 3.98%, AR 4.37%, AR 2.30%). Similar differences were observed for functional testing. Conversely, use of ICA, and risks of revascularization and MACCE were more common among individuals of lowest education level. Among patients examined with CCTA (n = 50 234), patients of lowest education level less often underwent functional testing and more likely initiated preventive medication, underwent ICA, revascularization, and experienced MACCE. CONCLUSION: Despite tax-financed healthcare in Denmark, individuals of lowest education level were less likely to undergo CCTA and functional testing than persons of higher education level. ICA utilization, revascularization and MACCE risks were higher for individuals of lowest education level. Among CCTA-examined patients, patients of lowest education level were more likely to initiate preventive medication and had the highest risks of revascularization and MACCE when compared to higher education level groups. These findings suggest that the preventive potential of CCTA is underutilized in individuals of lower education level, a proxy for socioeconomic status. Socioeconomic differences in CAD assessment, care, and outcomes are likely even larger without tax-financed healthcare.

Technical assessment in minimally invasive complete mesocolic excision: Is the complete mesocolic excision competency assessment tool valid and reliable?

AIM: The complete mesocolic excision competency assessment tool (CMECAT) is a novel tool designed to assess technical skills in minimally invasive complete mesocolic excision (CME) surgery. The aim of this study was to assess construct validity and reliability of CMECAT in a clinical context. METHOD: Colorectal surgeons were asked to submit video recorded laparoscopic CME resections for independent assessment of their technical abilities. The videos were grouped by surgeons' training level, and four established CME experts were recruited as CMECAT assessors. Extended reliability analysis (G-theory) was applied to describe assessor agreement. RESULTS: A total of 19 videos and 72 assessments were included in the analysis. Overall, technical skills assessed by CMECAT improved with increased training level: the experts scored significantly better than the untrained surgeons (3.3 vs. 2.5 points; p < 0.01). On right-sided resections, significantly higher scores were reported with increased training level for all categories and sections, while for left-sided resections, the variance across groups was smaller and significantly higher scores were only reported for oncological safety describing items. Overall, assessor agreement was high (G-coefficient: 0.81). CONCLUSION: This study confirms that CMECAT can be applied to video recorded CME cases for technical skill assessment. Further, it can reliably assess technical performance in right sided CME surgery, where construct validity has now been established. More videos are required to evaluate its validity on left colonic CME. In the future, we hope CMECAT can improve feedback during CME training, serve as a tool in certification processes and contribute to distinguishing CME from conventional surgery in future research.