Functional outcome of stroke and the cumulative experience of a stroke unit

Objective: Patients with acute stroke are more likely to survive and achieve independence if they are treated in a stroke unit. Available information in our setting is scarce. We analyse the outcomes of our patients on the basis of cumulative experience in a stroke unit.

Patients and methods: A retrospective cohort study of patients admitted to a stroke unit. We differentiate between two groups according to the year of admission: group A (July 2007-December 2009) and group B (January 2010-December 2011), analysing early outcome based on the score on the National Institute of Health stroke scale and mortality at discharge, and medium-term outcome in terms of mortality and functional status according to the modified Rankin scale at three months.

Results: A total 1070 patients were included. There were no differences between groups with respect to favourable outcome (68.3% vs 63.9), hospital mortality (5.1% vs 6.6%), or 90-day mortality (12.8% vs 13.1%). The percentage of patients who were independent at 90 days was greater in group B (56.3% vs 65.5%, P=.03). In the multivariate analysis adjusted for stroke subtype and fibrinolytic therapy, the association between patient independence and admission period remained present.

Conclusions: The probability of functional independence in our patients increased alongside accumulated experience in our stroke unit with no differences in mortality.