Stroke outcomes at the pathological clinic of a public hospital

ABSTRACT

Introduction: Stroke is a clinical syndrome characterized by a neurological deficit attributable to an acute, focal lesion of the central nervous system (CNS), of a vascular origin such as cerebral infarction and intracerebral hemorrhage.

Aim: The aim of the present thesis was to record the outcome of patients with ischemic stroke treated in the pathological unit of a public hospital, while the secondary objectives aimed to record the treatment and correlate the patients’ outcome with their demographic and clinical characteristics.

Material and Method: The research conducted was descriptive and retrospective. The data were collected from patient files of public hospital, who were hospitalized from 2012 until December 2018.

Results: The sample consisted of 55 patients with an average age of 81.2 years, 52.7% were women, and the rate of patients with ischemic stroke was 98.1%. Based on the findings, patients who expired and those who developed complications had established ischemic stroke, while they had statistically significant lower scores on the Glasgow scale. Moreover, patients who expired (p <0.047) or had complications (p <0.001) had a longer duration of hospitalization. The complications rate was significantly higher in patients with fever (p <0.001) and in those with impaired speech (p <0.049).

Conclusions: The outcome of patients with ischemic stroke treated in the pathological clinic of a public hospital is good, as the vast majority of patients are discharged. Apparently the international guidelines concerning the evaluation and management of patients with stroke are not followed. Moreover, the development of specific complications underlines the importance of providing more intensive nursing care of patients with ischemic stroke. In any case, at a national level compliance with the international guidelines is recommended. As stroke is associated with increased disability and deterioration in patient’s quality of life, further investigation of the determinants of patient outcome is considered to be necessary.

Keywords: Stroke, ischemic stroke, outcome, complications, morbidity, mortality