When to call 911? When you think someone’s having a stroke.
| July 07, 2011 | |
New research from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill shows that people presumed to have had a stroke receive more rapid evaluation if they arrive at the hospital by Emergency Medical Services (EMS) transport and if EMS has notified the hospital while in transit about the immediate need for brain imaging.
Mehul Patel
Lead author of the study, published online June 9 in the journal Stroke, is Mehul D. Patel, MSPH, epidemiology doctoral student at UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health. Patel and colleagues analyzed data for 13,894 patients identified and enrolled by the North Carolina Stroke Care Collaborative in 2008 and 2009, including whether they arrived by ambulance or private transport, whether EMS personnel notified the hospital while in transit that a patient likely had suffered a stroke, whether the patient received brain imaging within the recommended target time (25 minutes from arrival at the hospital), and whether a physician interpreted the brain imaging within the recommended target time (45 minutes from hospital arrival). The researchers found that only 21 percent of patients in the survey received brain scans within the recommended time, and only 23 percent had imaging results interpreted by a physician within the window of time that would produce a best outcome. Arrival by ambulance rather than by private transport was associated with a higher likelihood that the imaging and image interpretation were completed within the target time. Patients for whom EMS personnel had pre-notified the hospital about their likely stroke experienced the most rapid evaluation. “We hope this analysis will encourage clinicians and policy makers from hospitals and EMS agencies to develop systems of care that coordinate health services across the entire continuum of stroke care, from recognition, to initiation of EMS, through the patient’s hospital stay,” Patel said. “When given appropriate resources and training, EMS personnel significantly can reduce delays in hospitalized stroke patients, which may lead to an increase in delivery of life-saving treatment.” Co-authors of the study, all from the UNC public health school’s epidemiology department, include Kathryn M. Rose, PhD, adjunct research associate professor; Emily C. O’Brien, MSPH, doctoral student; and Wayne D. Rosamond, PhD, professor. For more information about recognizing the symptoms of stroke, see The Stroke Collaborative’s “Give me Five” website. The collaborative encourages awareness about five changes in the ways a person is able to “Walk, Talk, Reach, See and Feel.” Difficulty with balance or speaking, weakness or numbness on one side of the body, changes in vision and/or severe headache may indicate the onset of a stroke. These symptoms require immediate action. Call 911 immediately. UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health contact: Ramona DuBose, director of communications, (919) 966-7467 or ramona_dubose@unc.edu. |
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