Early Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Acute Stroke Treatment Delays
Joel Neves Briard, Célina Ducroux, Grégory Jacquin, Walid Alesefir, William Boisseau, Nicole Daneault, Yan Deschaintre, Johanna Eneling, Laura Gioia, Daniela Iancu, Céline Odier, Jean Raymond, Daniel Roy, Christian Stapf, Alain Weill, Alexandre Y. Poppe
Abstract
This is an observational cohort study comparing 156 patients evaluated for acute stroke between March 30 and May 31, 2020 at a comprehensive stroke center with 138 patients evaluated during the corresponding time period in 2019. During the pandemic, the proportion of COVID-19 positive patients was low (3%), the time from symptom onset to hospital presentation was significantly longer, and a smaller proportion of patients underwent reperfusion therapy. Among patients directly evaluated at our institution, door-to-needle and door-to-recanalization metrics were significantly longer. Our findings support concerns that the current pandemic may have a negative impact on the management of acute stroke.