Clinical trial NCT03672890: Telestroke for Comprehensive Stroke Care in Acute Stroke Ready Hospitals
Official title: Telestroke for Comprehensive Stroke Care in Acute Stroke Ready Hospitals
Study type: OBSERVATIONAL
Overall status: COMPLETED
Conditions: Stroke
Keywords: Telestroke
Telemedicine
Stroke
Secondary stroke prevention
Lead sponsor: University of Minnesota
Sponsor class: OTHER
First posted: 2018-09-17
Enrollment: 551
Sex: ALL
Minimum age (years): 18
Standard ages: ADULT
OLDER_ADULT
Accepts healthy volunteers: no
Observational model: COHORT
Time perspective: PROSPECTIVE
Sampling method: PROBABILITY_SAMPLE
Study population: All patients admitted with a diagnosis of acute ischemic stroke at a participating ASRH two years before and one year after implementation of the telestroke inpatient service.

Brief summary: TELEstroke for Comprehensive Stroke Care in Acute Stroke Ready HospiTals (TELECAST) is a prospective single-center study evaluating guideline-based acute ischemic stroke care at an Acute Stroke Ready Hospital (ASRH) pre- and post-initiation of a specialist telestroke inpatient rounding service. TELECAST will study the following clinical endpoints: diagnostic stroke evaluation, secondary stroke prevention, health screening and evaluation, stroke education, inpatient complications, and stroke recurrence rates. Additional relevant non-clinical data will include patient and provider satisfaction scores, transfer patterns, and a cost analysis.

Detailed description: Telestroke is a validated intervention that improves the triage and emergent treatment of acute stroke, specifically related to the use of intravenous thrombolysis. Effective urgent stroke evaluation and secondary stroke prevention is also essential to decrease the risk of recurrent stroke, however, there have been no studies to date examining the use of telestroke to improve delivery of non-emergent inpatient stroke care per American Heart Association (AHA) guidelines.

Currently, access to stroke specialist expertise is limited resulting in significant disparities in stroke care. Previous publications have identified that patients in rural areas may receive sub-optimal stroke care that does not follow accepted guideline recommendations. Telestroke is a cost-effective mechanism to deliver specialist stroke care to hospitals that do not have in-person stroke consultation available. The aim of TELECAST is to determine whether specialist telestroke inpatient rounding improves guideline-based acute stroke care when compared to non-specialist stroke care.

The primary outcome of TELECAST is a composite score comprising 4 categories: diagnostic stroke evaluation, secondary stroke prevention, health screening and evaluation, and stroke education. Individual components of the primary outcome were primarily derived from AHA stroke guidelines. Additional outcome measures include individual analyses of the components of the primary outcome as well as the complication rate, stroke recurrence rate, transfer rate, patient and provider satisfaction levels, and a cost-analysis. All outcomes will be assessed at 1 year post-implementation, with data accruement beginning after a 3-month lead in phase.

Eligibility criteria: Inclusion Criteria:

* Age 18 and above
* Patients with the primary diagnosis of ischemic stroke admitted to Fairview Ridges Hospital
* Evidence of stroke on MRI or CT or clinical diagnosis of acute ischemic stroke by the treating stroke service

Exclusion Criteria:

* Patients less than 18 years old
* Patients who leave the hospital against medical advice
* Patients with goals of care that impact the stroke evaluation (i.e. comfort measures)
* Patients who are felt to have an alternative diagnosis
* Patients who are transferred for higher-level stroke care such as endovascular thrombectomy or decompressive craniectomy

Primary outcomes:
measure: Composite score of inpatient stroke care (%)
timeFrame: 1 year after implementation of the inpatient telestroke service
Secondary outcomes:
measure: Diagnostic Stroke Evaluation
timeFrame: 1 year after implementation of the inpatient telestroke service
measure: Secondary Stroke Prevention
timeFrame: 1 year after implementation of the inpatient telestroke service
measure: Health Screening & Evaluation
timeFrame: 1 year after implementation of the inpatient telestroke service
measure: Stroke Education
timeFrame: 1 year after implementation of the inpatient telestroke service
measure: Composite Stroke Recurrence
timeFrame: Measured at 3 months and at 1 year after discharge
Other outcomes:
measure: Acute Stroke Care
timeFrame: 1 year after implementation of the inpatient telestroke service
measure: Transfer patterns
timeFrame: 1 year after implementation of the inpatient telestroke service
measure: Inpatient complications
timeFrame: 1 year after implementation of the inpatient telestroke service
measure: Provider and patient satisfaction
timeFrame: 1 year after implementation of the inpatient telestroke service
measure: Cost analysis
timeFrame: 1 year after implementation of the inpatient telestroke service
measure: Hospital Length of Stay
timeFrame: 1 year after implementation of the inpatient telestroke service
measure: Telestroke feasibility
timeFrame: 1 year after implementation of the inpatient telestroke service
measure: 14. Composite score of fundamental inpatient stroke care at non-telestroke ASRHs (%), including Fairview Hospitals: Range, Grand Itasca, Lakes, and Northland
timeFrame: 2 years retrospective data and 1 year prospective data after implementation of the inpatient telestroke service at the participating ASRH
measure: Composite score of fundamental inpatient stroke care at the CSC hub site (%)
timeFrame: 2 years retrospective data and 1 year prospective data after implementation of the inpatient telestroke service at the participating ASRH
Locations:
city: Burnsville
country: United States
facility: Fairview Ridges Hospital
state: Minnesota
city: Grand Rapids
country: United States
facility: Grand Itasca Clinic and Hospital
state: Minnesota
city: Hibbing
country: United States
facility: Fairview Range Medical Center
state: Minnesota
city: Princeton
country: United States
facility: Fairview Northland Medical Center
state: Minnesota
city: Wyoming
country: United States
facility: Fairview Lakes Medical Center
state: Minnesota
Study officials:
affiliation: University of Minnesota
name: Christopher Streib, MD
role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR
References:
citation: Jauch EC, Saver JL, Adams HP Jr, Bruno A, Connors JJ, Demaerschalk BM, Khatri P, McMullan PW Jr, Qureshi AI, Rosenfield K, Scott PA, Summers DR, Wang DZ, Wintermark M, Yonas H; American Heart Association Stroke Council; Council on Cardiovascular Nursing; Council on Peripheral Vascular Disease; Council on Clinical Cardiology. Guidelines for the early management of patients with acute ischemic stroke: a guideline for healthcare professionals from the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association. Stroke. 2013 Mar;44(3):870-947. doi: 10.1161/STR.0b013e318284056a. Epub 2013 Jan 31.
citation: Powers WJ, Derdeyn CP, Biller J, Coffey CS, Hoh BL, Jauch EC, Johnston KC, Johnston SC, Khalessi AA, Kidwell CS, Meschia JF, Ovbiagele B, Yavagal DR; American Heart Association Stroke Council. 2015 American Heart Association/American Stroke Association Focused Update of the 2013 Guidelines for the Early Management of Patients With Acute Ischemic Stroke Regarding Endovascular Treatment: A Guideline for Healthcare Professionals From the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association. Stroke. 2015 Oct;46(10):3020-35. doi: 10.1161/STR.0000000000000074. Epub 2015 Jun 29.
citation: Kernan WN, Ovbiagele B, Black HR, Bravata DM, Chimowitz MI, Ezekowitz MD, Fang MC, Fisher M, Furie KL, Heck DV, Johnston SC, Kasner SE, Kittner SJ, Mitchell PH, Rich MW, Richardson D, Schwamm LH, Wilson JA; American Heart Association Stroke Council, Council on Cardiovascular and Stroke Nursing, Council on Clinical Cardiology, and Council on Peripheral Vascular Disease. Guidelines for the prevention of stroke in patients with stroke and transient ischemic attack: a guideline for healthcare professionals from the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association. Stroke. 2014 Jul;45(7):2160-236. doi: 10.1161/STR.0000000000000024. Epub 2014 May 1.
citation: Demaerschalk BM, Berg J, Chong BW, Gross H, Nystrom K, Adeoye O, Schwamm L, Wechsler L, Whitchurch S. American Telemedicine Association: Telestroke Guidelines. Telemed J E Health. 2017 May;23(5):376-389. doi: 10.1089/tmj.2017.0006. Epub 2017 Apr 6.
citation: Alberts MJ, Wechsler LR, Jensen ME, Latchaw RE, Crocco TJ, George MG, Baranski J, Bass RR, Ruff RL, Huang J, Mancini B, Gregory T, Gress D, Emr M, Warren M, Walker MD. Formation and function of acute stroke-ready hospitals within a stroke system of care recommendations from the brain attack coalition. Stroke. 2013 Dec;44(12):3382-93. doi: 10.1161/STROKEAHA.113.002285. Epub 2013 Nov 12.
citation: Wechsler LR, Demaerschalk BM, Schwamm LH, Adeoye OM, Audebert HJ, Fanale CV, Hess DC, Majersik JJ, Nystrom KV, Reeves MJ, Rosamond WD, Switzer JA; American Heart Association Stroke Council; Council on Epidemiology and Prevention; Council on Quality of Care and Outcomes Research. Telemedicine Quality and Outcomes in Stroke: A Scientific Statement for Healthcare Professionals From the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association. Stroke. 2017 Jan;48(1):e3-e25. doi: 10.1161/STR.0000000000000114. Epub 2016 Nov 3.
citation: Switzer JA, Demaerschalk BM, Xie J, Fan L, Villa KF, Wu EQ. Cost-effectiveness of hub-and-spoke telestroke networks for the management of acute ischemic stroke from the hospitals' perspectives. Circ Cardiovasc Qual Outcomes. 2013 Jan 1;6(1):18-26. doi: 10.1161/CIRCOUTCOMES.112.967125. Epub 2012 Dec 4.
citation: Meyer BC, Raman R, Hemmen T, Obler R, Zivin JA, Rao R, Thomas RG, Lyden PD. Efficacy of site-independent telemedicine in the STRokE DOC trial: a randomised, blinded, prospective study. Lancet Neurol. 2008 Sep;7(9):787-95. doi: 10.1016/S1474-4422(08)70171-6.
citation: Kepplinger J, Barlinn K, Deckert S, Scheibe M, Bodechtel U, Schmitt J. Safety and efficacy of thrombolysis in telestroke: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Neurology. 2016 Sep 27;87(13):1344-51. doi: 10.1212/WNL.0000000000003148. Epub 2016 Aug 26.
citation: Muller-Barna P, Hubert GJ, Boy S, Bogdahn U, Wiedmann S, Heuschmann PU, Audebert HJ. TeleStroke units serving as a model of care in rural areas: 10-year experience of the TeleMedical project for integrative stroke care. Stroke. 2014 Sep;45(9):2739-44. doi: 10.1161/STROKEAHA.114.006141.
citation: Tarnutzer AA, Lee SH, Robinson KA, Wang Z, Edlow JA, Newman-Toker DE. ED misdiagnosis of cerebrovascular events in the era of modern neuroimaging: A meta-analysis. Neurology. 2017 Apr 11;88(15):1468-1477. doi: 10.1212/WNL.0000000000003814. Epub 2017 Mar 29.
citation: Ovbiagele B, Schwamm LH, Smith EE, Hernandez AF, Olson DM, Pan W, Fonarow GC, Saver JL. Recent nationwide trends in discharge statin treatment of hospitalized patients with stroke. Stroke. 2010 Jul;41(7):1508-13. doi: 10.1161/STROKEAHA.109.573618. Epub 2010 May 27.
citation: Powers WJ, Rabinstein AA, Ackerson T, Adeoye OM, Bambakidis NC, Becker K, Biller J, Brown M, Demaerschalk BM, Hoh B, Jauch EC, Kidwell CS, Leslie-Mazwi TM, Ovbiagele B, Scott PA, Sheth KN, Southerland AM, Summers DV, Tirschwell DL; American Heart Association Stroke Council. 2018 Guidelines for the Early Management of Patients With Acute Ischemic Stroke: A Guideline for Healthcare Professionals From the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association. Stroke. 2018 Mar;49(3):e46-e110. doi: 10.1161/STR.0000000000000158. Epub 2018 Jan 24.
citation: Lavallee PC, Meseguer E, Abboud H, Cabrejo L, Olivot JM, Simon O, Mazighi M, Nifle C, Niclot P, Lapergue B, Klein IF, Brochet E, Steg PG, Leseche G, Labreuche J, Touboul PJ, Amarenco P. A transient ischaemic attack clinic with round-the-clock access (SOS-TIA): feasibility and effects. Lancet Neurol. 2007 Nov;6(11):953-60. doi: 10.1016/S1474-4422(07)70248-X.
citation: Rothwell PM, Giles MF, Chandratheva A, Marquardt L, Geraghty O, Redgrave JN, Lovelock CE, Binney LE, Bull LM, Cuthbertson FC, Welch SJ, Bosch S, Alexander FC, Silver LE, Gutnikov SA, Mehta Z; Early use of Existing Preventive Strategies for Stroke (EXPRESS) study. Effect of urgent treatment of transient ischaemic attack and minor stroke on early recurrent stroke (EXPRESS study): a prospective population-based sequential comparison. Lancet. 2007 Oct 20;370(9596):1432-42. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(07)61448-2.