Aris Katsanos
A multinational COVID-19 stroke study group – including PHRI Investigator Aristeidis Katsanos – has released a report of their observations on stroke as a consequence of SARS-CoV-2 infection on a large scale. Among the 136 tertiary centers of 32 countries who participated, 71 centers from 17 countries had at least one eligible stroke patient.
Their study also explored the neuroimaging findings, features of patients who were asymptomatic for SARS-CoV-2 infection at stroke onset, and the impact of geographic regions and countries’ health expenditure on outcomes.
Their report was published this week in the AHA’s Stroke Journal.
During the pandemic, as compared with population studies before the pandemic, the multinational group observed:
- A considerably higher rate of large vessel occlusions
- A much lower rate of small vessel occlusion and lacunar infarction
- A considerable number of young stroke when compared with the population studies before the pandemic
- The rate of mechanical thrombectomy was significantly lower in countries with lower health expenditures.
