Changes in Stroke Patients' Health-Seeking Behavior by COVID-19 Epidemic Regions: Data from the Korean Stroke Registry.
Cerebrovasc Dis
; 51(2): 169-177, 2022.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-1443684
ABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION:
The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has led to changes in stroke patients' healthcare use. This study evaluated changes in Korean stroke patients' health-seeking behaviors and stroke care services using data from the Korean Stroke Registry (KSR).METHODS:
We reviewed data from patients with acute stroke and transient ischemic attack (TIA) during 2019 (before COVID-19 period) and 2020 (COVID-19 period). Outcomes included patient characteristics, time from stroke onset to hospital arrival, and in-hospital stroke pathways. Subgroup analyses were performed for an epidemic region (Daegu city and Gyeongsangbuk-do region, the D-G region).RESULTS:
The study included 1,792 patients from the pre-COVID-19 period and 1,555 patients from the COVID-19 period who visited hospitals that contribute to the KSR. During the COVID-19 period, the D-G region had two-thirds the number of cases (vs. the pre-CO-VID-19 period) and a significant decrease in the proportion of patients with TIA (9.97%-2.91%). Unlike other regions, the median onset-to-door time increased significantly in the D-G region (361 min vs. 526.5 min, p = 0.016), and longer onset-to-door times were common for patients with mild symptoms and who were in their 60s or 70s. The number of patients who underwent intravenous thrombolysis also decreased during the COVID-19 period, although the treatment times were not significantly different between the 2 periods. DISCUSSION/CONCLUSION:
Korean stroke patients in a CO-VID-19 epidemic region exhibited distinct changes in health-seeking behaviors. Appropriate triage system and public education regarding the importance of early treatment are needed during the COVID-19 pandemic.Keywords
Full text:
Available
Collection:
International databases
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Stroke
/
COVID-19
Type of study:
Diagnostic study
/
Experimental Studies
/
Observational study
Topics:
Long Covid
Limits:
Humans
Country/Region as subject:
Asia
Language:
English
Journal:
Cerebrovasc Dis
Journal subject:
Vascular Diseases
/
Brain
Year:
2022
Document Type:
Article
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