Concomitant COVID-19 and acute ischemic stroke in patients transferred by emergency medical service during first wave of pandemic in Tehran, Iran; a cross-sectional study

Abstract

Objective: We conducted this study to evaluate the prevalence of concomitant COVID-19 in acute ischemic stroke (AIS) patients admitted to stroke centers of Tehran, Iran. Methods: We conducted a retrospective cross-sectional study in a 45-day period. AIS patients transferred by emergency medical service (EMS) to all medical centers of the city were included. Information was recorded and compared in two groups: patients who tested positive for COVID-19 and those who were negative. Result: Emergency medical technicians (EMTs) screened 348 patients as AIS cases, of whom, AIS was ultimately confirmed in 311 (89.4%) patients; and 58 (18.6%) of the 311 AIS patients were diagnosed with concomitant COVID-19 infection. The National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) scores of COVID-19 positive AIS patients were significantly higher than non-COVID-19 AIS patients (16.3±3.7 vs. 11.8±4.3; p<0.001). There was also a significant difference in length of hospital stay between the two groups (11.1±1.8 vs. 8.8±4.3 days; p<0.001). However, data showed no significant difference regarding prevalence of in-hospital mortality between the two groups (1.6% vs. 3.5%; p=0.320). Conclusion: Our study results showed that AIS patients with concomitant COVID-19 infection had higher NIHSS scores and longer length of hospital stay compared to patients without concomitant COVID-19 infection.