Mission thrombectomy 2020 (MT2020+) surveys of Caribbean stroke services: A call for action in our region.

Stroke is the leading cause of death and adult-onset disability in the Caribbean region. Despite the tremendous advances in acute stroke care in the past 25 years, treatment in the Caribbean lags stroke standards of care. Mission Thrombectomy 2020+ (MT2020+) is a metrics based global campaign focused on increasing access to organized stroke care and mechanical thrombectomy. We conducted two consecutive online surveys across the MT2020+ Caribbean Region assessing access to thrombolytics, mechanical thrombectomy and stroke centers. The first survey - Mechanical Thrombectomy Access-Caribbean sub-study, allowed a comparison between global services and those in the MT2020+ Caribbean region. This survey provided a snapshot of the current state of stroke centers worldwide and confirmed lower available stroke resources in the MT2020+ Caribbean Region which has one certified stroke center, and 9 mechanical thrombectomy capable centers. The second survey - MT2020+ Caribbean Region infrastructure survey - was designed to determine the availability of stroke resources that are key components of stroke care in participating hospitals. Key infrastructural components such as 24/7 computerized tomographic scanners, access to thrombolytic therapy and access to mechanical thrombectomy capable centers were scarce. There were low volumes of mechanical thrombectomy performed in the Caribbean compared to other countries around the world. Limited resources and inadequate stroke infrastructure remains a major challenge in the Caribbean. We advocate for governmental support and investment, public and private partnerships and legislation to increase access and availability to acute stroke treatments to allow for equal access to care for all Caribbean citizens.

Younger age of stroke in low-middle income countries is related to healthcare access and quality.

Stroke is the second leading cause of mortality globally with higher burden and younger age in low-middle income countries (LMICs) than high-income countries (HICs). However, it is unclear to what extent differences in healthcare access and quality (HAQ) and prevalence of risk factors between LMICs and HICs contribute to younger age of stroke in LMICs. In this systematic review, we conducted meta-analysis of 67 articles and compared the mean age of stroke between LMICs and HICs, before and after adjusting for HAQ index. We also compared the prevalence of main stroke risk factors between HICs and LMICs. The unadjusted mean age of stroke in LMICs was significantly lower than HICs (63.1 vs. 68.6), regardless of gender (63.9 vs. 66.6 among men, and 65.6 vs. 70.7 among women) and whether data were collected in population- (64.7 vs. 69.5) or hospital-based (62.6 vs. 65.9) studies (all p < 0.01). However, after adjusting for HAQ index, the difference in the mean age of stroke between LMICs and HICs was not significant (p ≥ 0.10), except among women (p = 0.048). In addition, while the median prevalence of hypertension in LMICs was 23.4% higher than HICs, the prevalence of all other risk factors was lower in LMICs than HICs. Our findings suggest a much larger contribution of HAQ to the younger mean age of stroke in LMICs, as compared with other potential factors. Additional studies on stroke care quality and accessibility are needed in LMICs.