Factors associated with onset-to-door time in patients with transient ischemic attack admitted to stroke centers.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE The aim of this study was to elucidate the factors associated with the time from symptom onset to arrival at a stroke center (onset-to-door time [ODT]) in patients with classically defined transient ischemic attack using data from a multicenter, retrospective study. METHODS The subjects were patients with transient ischemic attack admitted to 13 stroke centers in Japan within 7 days of onset between 2008 and 2009. A total of 464 patients registered (292 men, 68.5±13.2 years old), and 421 of them (268 men, 68.8±13.1 years old) were included in the analyses. ODT was classified into the following 5 categories: <3 hours, 3 to 6 hours, 7 to 12 hours, 13 to 24 hours, and >24 hours. RESULTS There were 233 patients (55.3%) who visited a stroke center within 3 hours of symptom onset. Multiple ordinal logistic regression analysis revealed that motor weakness, speech disturbance, and duration of symptoms >10 minutes were independently associated with a short ODT. Furthermore, a history of transient ischemic attack and hypertension and a referral from another medical facility were independently associated with a long ODT. Patients with a higher ABCD2 score were likely to arrive at a stroke center more quickly. CONCLUSIONS We identified several factors that were positively and negatively associated with the ODT in patients with transient ischemic attack.