Acute Ischemic Stroke (AIS) patient management in French stroke units and impact estimation of thrombolysis on care pathways and associated costs.

BACKGROUND Stroke is the second leading cause of death and a first leading cause of acquired disability in adults worldwide. This study aims to evaluate the current management and associated costs of acute ischemic stroke (AIS) for patients admitted in stroke units in France and over a one-year follow-up period as well as to assess the impact of improved thrombolytic management in terms of increasing the proportion of patients receiving thrombolysis and/or treated within 3 h from the onset of symptoms. METHODS A decision model was developed, which comprises two components: the first corresponding to the acute hospital management phase of patients with AIS up until hospital discharge, extracted from the national hospital discharge database (PMSI 2011), and the second corresponding to the post-acute (post-discharge) phase, based on national treatment guidelines and stroke experts' advice. Five post-acute clinical care pathways were defined. In-hospital mortality and mortality at 3 months post-discharge was taken into account into the model. Patient journeys and costs were determined for both phases. Improved thrombolytic management was modeled by increasing the proportion of patients receiving thrombolysis from the current estimated level of 16.7 to 25% as well as subsequently increasing the proportion of patients treated within 3 h of the onset of symptoms post-stroke from 50 to 100%. The impact on care pathways was derived from clinical data. RESULTS Among 202,078 hospitalizations for a stroke or a transient ischemic attack (TIA), 90,528 were for confirmed AIS, and 33% (29,999) of them managed within a stroke unit. After hospitalization, 60% of discharges were to home, 25% to rehabilitative care and then home, 2% to rehabilitative care and then a nursing home, 7% to long-term care, and 6% of stays ended with patient death. Of a total cost over 1 year of €610 million (mean cost per patient of €20,326), 70% concern the post-acute phase. By increasing the proportion of patients being thrombolyzed, costs are reduced primarily by a decrease in rehabilitative care, with savings per additional treated patient of €1,462. By adding improved timing, savings are more than doubled (€3,183 per additional treated patient). CONCLUSIONS This study confirms that the burden of AIS in France is heavy. By improving thrombolytic management in stroke units, patient journeys through care pathways can be modified, with increased discharges home, a change in post-acute resource consumption and net savings.