Stroke coordinate nurse plays an important role—shortening door to needle time for intravenous thrombolysis

Abstract

Background and purpose: In order to conduct intravenous thrombolysis as soon as possible, a pioneer project in Japan, consisting of stroke coordinate nurse (SCNs), was established. The aim of this study was to investigate whether the SCNs was able to reduce door to needle time (DNT) for an acute ischemic stroke patient who received intravenous thrombolysis. Method: From April 2012 to February 2017, acute ischemic stroke patients with intravenous thrombolysis were enrolled. Patients were divided into two groups, DNT within 60 min (s-DNT group) and a 60 min or more time group (l-DNT group). We compared clinical characteristics including presence or absence of ASCNP services between short- and long-DNT groups. Results: A total of 74 patients (54 males, mean age: 68 years) were retrospectively enrolled and the s-DNT group consisted of 19 patients, and the l-DNT group was 55. The s-DNT group more frequently received SCNs service than that of the l-DNT group (52% vs. 18%, p=0.015). Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that SCNs service was the only independent factor associated with the s-DNT (OR 3.4, 95%CI 1.1–11.5, p=0.043). Conclusion: SCNs service was contributed to s-DNT in acute ischemic stroke patients with intravenous thrombolysis.