ABSTRACT
Little is known about stroke patients’ awareness about the warning signs of stroke and its therapeutic time window in Brazil. Method We interviewed consecutive patients with acute stroke admitted to a terciary public hospital in Brazil. Data collected included demographics, mode of arrival, National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) scores and knowledge of stroke warning signs and therapeutic time window. Early arrival was defined as within 4.5 hours of symptoms onset. Results Although 66.2% of patients knew the warning signs of stroke, only 7.8% reported to know that stroke had a limited therapeutic time window. Stroke severity measured by the NIHSS was independently associated with early arrival, but not knowledge of stroke signs and symptoms. Conclusion Knowledge about stroke symptoms was not a predictor of early arrival. .
Pouco se sabe sobre o conhecimento dos pacientes com acidente vascular cerebral (AVC) acerca dos sinais de alarme da doença e sua janela terapêutica no Brasil. Método Foram entrevistados consecutivamente os pacientes com AVC agudo internados em um hospital público terciário no Brasil. Os dados coletados incluíram dados demográficos, o modo de chegada, escala de AVC do National Institute of Health (NIH) e conhecimento sobre a janela de tempo terapêutica e os sinais de alerta do AVC através de um questionário padronizado. Chegada precoce foi definida como aquela dentro de 4,5 horas do início dos sintomas. Resultados Embora 66,2% dos pacientes sabiam os sinais de alerta do AVC , apenas 7,8% relataram saber que a doença tinha uma janela de tempo terapêutica limitada. A gravidade do AVC avaliada pela escala do NIH foi preditora de chegada precoce, mas conhecimento acerca dos sinais e sintomas do AVC não foram. Conclusão O conhecimento acerca dos sintomas do AVC não foi preditivo de chegada precoce ao hospital. .
Subject(s)
Aged , Aged, 80 and over , Female , Humans , Male , Middle Aged , Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice , Stroke/diagnosis , Brazil , Cross-Sectional Studies , Educational Status , Hospitals, Public , Severity of Illness Index , Statistics, Nonparametric , Surveys and Questionnaires , Tertiary Care Centers , Time FactorsABSTRACT
UNLABELLED: Little is known about stroke patients' awareness about the warning signs of stroke and its therapeutic time window in Brazil. METHOD: We interviewed consecutive patients with acute stroke admitted to a terciary public hospital in Brazil. Data collected included demographics, mode of arrival, National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) scores and knowledge of stroke warning signs and therapeutic time window. Early arrival was defined as within 4.5 hours of symptoms onset. RESULTS: Although 66.2% of patients knew the warning signs of stroke, only 7.8% reported to know that stroke had a limited therapeutic time window. Stroke severity measured by the NIHSS was independently associated with early arrival, but not knowledge of stroke signs and symptoms. CONCLUSION: Knowledge about stroke symptoms was not a predictor of early arrival.
Subject(s)
Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice , Stroke/diagnosis , Aged , Aged, 80 and over , Brazil , Cross-Sectional Studies , Educational Status , Female , Hospitals, Public , Humans , Male , Middle Aged , Severity of Illness Index , Statistics, Nonparametric , Surveys and Questionnaires , Tertiary Care Centers , Time FactorsABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Pneumococcal meningitis in adults is widely associated with intracranial complications, which occur in up to 74.7% of the patients. METHOD: Case report. RESULTS: We report the case of a 40-year-old white female with pneumococcal meningitis after a sinus surgery, who developed a concomitant cerebral venous thrombosis and multiple cervical artery dissections. Following treatment with antibiotics and intravenous heparin, she had complete neurological recovery. CONCLUSIONS: Vascular complications should always be remembered and adequately treated in patients with bacterial meningitis. Cervical arterial dissections should be investigated as potential embolic sources of intracranial ischemic lesions.
