Coping Strategies, Quality of Life, and Neurological Outcome in Patients Treated with Mechanical Thrombectomy after an Acute Ischemic Stroke

Abstract

New reperfusion therapies have improved the clinical recovery rates of acute ischemic stroke patients (AISP), but it is not known whether other factors, such as the ability to cope, might also have an effect. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of endovascular treatment (EVT) on coping strategies, quality of life, and neurological and functional outcomes in AISP at 3 months and 1 year post-stroke. A multicenter, prospective, longitudinal, and comparative study of a sub-study of the participants in the Endovascular Revascularization with Solitaire Device versus Best Medical Therapy in Anterior Circulation Stroke within 8 Hours (REVASCAT) clinical trial was conducted after recruiting from two stroke centers in Catalonia, Spain. The cohort consisted of 82 ischemic stroke patients (n = 42 undergoing EVT and n = 40 undergoing standard best medical treatment (BMT) as a control group), enrolled between 2013–2015. We assessed the coping strategies using the Brief Coping Questionnaire (Brief-COPE-28), the health-related quality of life (HRQoL) with the EQ-5D questionnaire, and the neurological and functional status using the National Institute of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS), Barthel Index (BI), modified Rankin Scale (mRS), and Stroke Impact Scale-16 (SIS-16). Bivariate analyses and multivariate linear regression models were used. EVT patients were the ones that showed better neurological and functional outcomes, and more patients presented reporting no pain/discomfort at 3 months; paradoxically, problem-focused coping strategies were found to be significantly higher in patients treated with BMT at 1 year.