The current situation of Telestroke in Spain

In recent years, telestroke programmes have been established as a fundamental tool for extending acute stroke care to hospitals that lack an on-call neurology service. The main objective of this study is to describe the existence and functioning of the different telestroke systems and networks (TS) in Spain.

We conducted a cross-sectional study to analyse the current situation of TS in Spain using a structured survey distributed among the members of the Stroke Study Group of the Spanish Society of Neurology.

Responses were received from 12 of the 17 Spanish autonomous communities, of which 10 had implemented TS. In addition, a literature search revealed that 2 other systems were in operation. Twelve of the 17 regions in the country have TS, achieving coverage of at least 20% of the Spanish population. Of these 10 TS, organisation was regional in 7, provincial in 2, and hospital-based in one. Most TS (9) included at least simple CT and angio-CT studies; 4 also included perfusion imaging. Nine TS operated with professional videoconferencing equipment. However, the suboptimal quality of examination via videoconferencing scan was the main problem identified in 50% of TS. Other problems detected are difficulty obtaining data from registries and the transfer of images between hospitals.

In recent years, a significant expansion of telestroke programmes has taken place in Spain, which has improved the accessibility of specialised care in patients with symptoms of acute stroke. This study allows us to describe the different types of TS in Spain and to detect areas for improvement and expansion, and could contribute to defining regional telestroke implementation strategies to offer quality care to the whole population.