Trondheim 1991.

Study characteristics
Methods	RCT
Participants	People with stroke within 7 days (usually within 24 hours) of stroke onset Exclusion of deeply unconscious patients and those previously residing in a nursing home
Interventions	Comprehensive stroke ward (dedicated stroke unit) (n = 110) vs general medical ward (n = 110) Organised care provided for a maximum of 6 weeks
Outcomes	Death, Barthel Index, place of residence, length of stay in hospital or institution up to 1 year after stroke
Notes	‐
Risk of bias
Bias	Authors' judgement	Support for judgement
Random sequence generation (selection bias)	Low risk	"Randomly assigned ... using serially numbered sealed envelopes"
Allocation concealment (selection bias)	Low risk	"Serially numbered sealed envelopes"
Blinding of participants and personnel (performance bias) All outcomes	Unclear risk	Difficult to conceal
Blinding of outcome assessment (detection bias) All outcomes	Unclear risk	Both blinded and open assessments available for 50% of participants at 52 weeks; open assessments available for only 50% Correlation between blinded and open was high, but risk of bias remains unclear
Incomplete outcome data (attrition bias) All outcomes	Low risk	No missing outcome data
Selective reporting (reporting bias)	Low risk	All pre‐specified outcomes reported

ADL: activity of daily living.
CT: computerised tomography.
FIM: Functional Independence Measure.
GMW: general medical ward.
ITT: intention‐to‐treat.
LOS: length of stay.
mRS: modified Rankin Scale.
MRW: mixed rehabilitation ward.
NIHSS: National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale.
OHS: Oxford Handicap Scale.
RCT: randomised controlled trial.
SD: standard deviation.
SPSS: Statistical Package for the Social Sciences.
TIA: transient ischaemic attack.
WHO: World Health Organization.