Table 1.
Characteristics of EMS calls for stroke suspicion according to county and time period
| Rhône county (intervention) | Isère county (control) | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| T0 (N = 214) | T1 (N = 234) | T2 (N = 259) | T0 (N = 186) | T1 (N = 174) | T2 (N = 159) | |
| Age, yrs (median [Q1-Q3]) | 75 [60–84] | 73.5 [59–85] | 75 [60–84] | 77 [62–84] | 77 [62–86] | 76.5 [63.5–86] |
| Gender | ||||||
| Female | 105 (50.2) | 131 (56.0) | 150 (57.9) | 76 (40.9) | 90 (51.7) | 83 (52.2) |
| Male | 104 (49.8) | 103 (44.0) | 109 (42.1) | 110 (59.1) | 84 (48.3) | 76 (47.8) |
| Symptoms | ||||||
| Arm/leg weakness | 119 (55.6) | 106 (45.3) | 105 (40.5) | 125 (67.2) | 91 (52.3) | 89 (56.0) |
| Facial paralysis | 54 (25.2) | 62 (26.5) | 77 (29.7) | 71 (38.2) | 65 (37.6) | 56 (35.2) |
| Speech disorder | 96 (44.9) | 114 (48.7) | 124 (47.9) | 114 (61.3) | 86 (49.7) | 90 (56.6) |
| Positive FAST score | 182 (85.0) | 192 (82.0) | 215 (83.0) | 177 (95.0) | 142 (81.6) | 138 (86.8) |
| Admission facility | ||||||
| SU | 65 (31.5) | 43 (19.0) | 57 (22.7) | 26 (14.0) | 14 (8.0) | 7 (4.4) |
| ED | 132 (64.1) | 168 (74.3) | 182 (72.5) | 157 (84.4) | 151 (86.8) | 148 (93.1) |
| ICU | 4 (1.9) | 2 (0.9) | 0 (0.0) | 0 (0.0) | 3 (1.7) | 1 (0.6) |
| Other | 5 (2.4) | 13 (5.7) | 12 (4.8) | 3 (1.6) | 6 (3.4) | 3 (1.9) |
EMS Emergency Medical Services, y years, SU Stroke Unit, ED Emergency Department, ICU Intensive Care Unit