Reduced Poststroke Complications after Combination of Multidimensional Nursing Interventions and Antiplatelet Therapy

Stroke survivors remain at high risk of recurrent events and complications despite standard antiplatelet therapy. Multidimensional nursing interventions may improve outcomes by addressing the medical, functional, and psychosocial needs that conventional care often overlooks during the recovery period. This retrospective, single-center study included 120 ischemic stroke patients discharged on antiplatelet therapy. Patients were divided into an intervention group receiving multidimensional nursing care and a control group receiving conventional care. The primary outcome was the incidence of post-stroke complications within 30 days of discharge. The secondary outcome was complication-free survival over 12 months of follow-up. Logistic regression was used to assess the intervention effect on the primary outcome, and Kaplan-Meier survival analysis was used to evaluate the secondary outcome. For the primary 30-day outcome, the incidence of complications was significantly lower in the intervention group (11.7% vs. 35.0%, P < 0.01). Multivariable logistic regression, adjusting for age, stroke severity (NIHSS score), and BMI, identified the nursing intervention as an independent protective factor against 30-day complications (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 0.267, 95% CI: 0.108-0.658, P = 0.005). For the secondary 12-month outcome, Kaplan-Meier analysis demonstrated significantly prolonged complication-free survival in the intervention group compared with the control group (log-rank P = 0.0042). These findings suggest that a multidimensional nursing intervention combined with standard antiplatelet therapy may reduce the incidence and delay the onset of post-stroke complications in patients with ischemic stroke. However, due to the retrospective, non-randomized design and potential residual confounding, these findings should be considered hypothesis-generating and confirmed in prospective randomized trials.