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Updated: Jun 15, 2026

Optimized Management of Endovascular Treatment for Acute Ischemic Stroke
Published on: January 18, 2018
Emergency department arrival times, treatment, and functional recovery in women with acute ischemic stroke
Wesley Knauft1, Jyoti Chhabra, Louise D McCullough
1Department of Neurology, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06030, USA.
Background:
Sex disparities have been well documented in patients with ischemic stroke. Previous studies have suggested that female sex is a risk factor for delay in arrival time to the emergency department (ED) and may contribute to ineligibility for thrombolytic therapy. With the increase in education efforts targeting women, we investigated whether ED arrival times, rates of thrombolytic use, and functional outcomes continue to differ in men and women with acute ischemic stroke (AIS).
Methods:
This study was a retrospective database analysis of patients with AIS (2001-2008). All AIS patients presenting within 24 hours with a known time of symptom onset and a documented admission National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) were included. The Modified Barthel Index (MBI) assessed patients' functional status preadmission (historical), admission, and at 3 and 12 months poststroke.
Results:
Included in the analysis were 480 (50.6%) women and 468 (49.4%) men. Women were significantly older than men (70.6 +/- 0.7 vs. 65.3 years +/- 0.6, p
Conclusions:
Women arrive at the ED at equivalent speed as men after AIS. Women had greater functional impairments at 3 months and 12 months poststroke despite equivalent prestroke MBI and admission NIHSS. Female sex contributes to poorer chronic functional outcomes after AIS.
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