Endovascular therapy for ischemic stroke: Save a minute-save a week

Area of Science:

• Neurology
• Public Health
• Health Economics

Background:

• Acute ischemic stroke requires timely intervention.
• Endovascular therapy offers significant benefits for large vessel occlusions.
• Delays in treatment impact patient outcomes and long-term disability.

Purpose of the Study:

• To quantify the lifetime health benefits of reducing treatment delays for acute ischemic stroke patients.
• To model the impact of reduced onset-to-treatment times on long-term patient outcomes.

Main Methods:

• Utilized prospective observational data from Helsinki stroke patients (1998-2014).
• Applied treatment effect data from the MR CLEAN trial to model outcome shifts.
• Derived patient lifetime benefits and long-term disability from 3-month modified Rankin Scale (mRS) scores.

Main Results:

• Each minute saved in onset-to-treatment time yielded an average of 4.2 days of extra healthy life.
• Younger patients (<55 years) with severe strokes gained over a week of healthy life per minute saved.
• A 20-minute reduction in treatment delays equated to an average gain of 3 months of disability-free life.

Conclusions:

• Minor reductions in endovascular therapy delays result in substantial lifetime health gains.
• Optimizing healthcare services to minimize delays is crucial for improving patient longevity and quality of life.