Background: There has been no comparison of the determinants of admission route between acute ischemic stroke (AIS) and acute myocardial infarction (AMI). We examined whether factors associated with direct versus transferred-in admission to regional cardiocerebrovascular centers (RCVCs) differed between AIS and AMI. Methods: Using a nationwide RCVC registry, we identified consecutive patients presenting with AMI and AIS between July 2016 and December 2018. We explored factors associated with direct admission to RCVCs in patients with AIS and AMI and examined whether those associations differed between AIS and AMI, including interaction terms between each factor and disease type in multivariable models. To explore the influence of emergency medical service (EMS) paramedics on hospital selection, stratified analyses according to use of EMS were also performed. Results: Among the 17,897 and 8,927 AIS and AMI patients, 66.6% and 48.2% were directly admitted to RCVCs, respectively. Multivariable analysis showed that previous coronary heart disease, prehospital awareness, higher education level, and EMS use increased the odds of direct admission to RCVCs, but the odds ratio (OR) was different between AIS and AMI (for the first 3 factors, AMI > AIS; for EMS use, AMI < AIS). EMS use was the single most important factor for both AIS and AMI (OR, 4.72 vs. 3.90). Hypertension and hyperlipidemia increased, while living alone decreased the odds of direct admission only in AMI;additionally, age (65–74 years), previous stroke, and presentation during non-working hours increased the odds only in AIS. EMS use weakened the associations between direct admission and most factors in both AIS and AMI. Conclusions Various patient factors were differentially associated with direct admission to RCVCs between AIS and AMI. Public education for symptom awareness and use of EMS is essential in optimizing the transportation and hospitalization of patients with AMI and AIS.

Antithrombotic therapy is a cornerstone of acute ischemic stroke (AIS) management and secondary stroke prevention. Since the first version of the Korean Clinical Practice Guideline (CPG) for stroke was issued in 2009, significant progress has been made in antithrombotic therapy for patients with AIS, including dual antiplatelet therapy in acute minor ischemic stroke or high-risk transient ischemic stroke and early oral anticoagulation in AIS with atrial fibrillation. The evidence is widely accepted by stroke experts and has changed clinical practice. Accordingly, the CPG Committee of the Korean Stroke Society (KSS) decided to update the Korean Stroke CPG for antithrombotic therapy for AIS. The writing members of the CPG committee of the KSS reviewed recent evidence, including clinical trials and relevant literature, and revised recommendations. A total of 35 experts were invited from the KSS to reach a consensus on the revised recommendations. The current guideline update aims to assist healthcare providers in making well-informed decisions and improving the quality of acute stroke care. However, the ultimate treatment decision should be made using a holistic approach, considering the specific medical conditions of individual patients.

Background: Sedentary behavior is associated with increased cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk. We investigated this association of sedentary time and physical activity with increased 10-year CVD risk in Korean adults. Methods: This cross-sectional study used data from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (2014–2017). In total, 14,551 participants aged 30–74 years (6,323 men, 8,228 women) were analyzed. The usual length of sedentary time per day was categorized into three groups (<6, 6–<9, or ≥9 h/d), and physical activity (metabolic equivalents [METs]∙min/wk) was categorized into two groups (low, <600 METs∙min/wk; moderate/high, ≥600 METs∙min/wk). Logistic regression analysis was performed to assess the association between sedentary time and increased CVD risk (predicted 10-year risk ≥10%). Adjusted variables were age, sex, body mass index, marital status, employment, household income, alcohol use, family history of CVD, and comorbidity (hypertension, diabetes, and dyslipidemia). Results: The average sedentary time for the 14,551 participants was 7.49 h/d, with an average 10-year CVD risk of 9.58%. There was no significant association between sedentary time and increased 10-year CVD risk in the moderate/ high physical activity group. In the low physical activity group, sedentary time ≥9 h/d had a significant association with increased CVD risk (odds ratio [OR], 1.29; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.04–1.62). However, when the sedentary time was <6 h/d, no significant associations were found (OR, 1.17; 95% CI, 0.92–1.49). Conclusion In the low physical activity group, reduction of sedentary time might be important for preventing increased CVD risk.

Endovascular recanalization therapy (ERT) has been a standard of care for patients with acute ischemic stroke due to large artery occlusion (LAO) within 6 hours after onset since the five landmark ERT trials up to 2015 demonstrated its clinical benefit. Recently, two randomized clinical trials demonstrated that ERT, even in the late time window up to 16 hours or 24 hours after last known normal time, improved the outcome of patients who had a target mismatch defined as either clinical-core mismatch or perfusion-core mismatch, which prompted the update of national guidelines in several countries. Accordingly, to provide evidence-based and up-to-date recommendations for ERT in patients with acute LAO in Korea, the Clinical Practice Guidelines Committee of the Korean Stroke Society decided to revise the previous Korean Clinical Practice Guidelines of Stroke for ERT. For this update, the members of the writing group were appointed by the Korean Stroke Society and the Korean Society of Interventional Neuroradiology. After thorough reviewing the updated evidence from two recent trials and relevant literature, the writing members revised recommendations, for which formal consensus was achieved by convening an expert panel composed of 45 experts from the participating academic societies. The current guidelines are intended to help healthcare providers, patients, and their caregivers make their well-informed decisions and to improve the quality of care regarding ERT. The ultimate decision for ERT in a particular patient must be made in light of circumstances specific to that patient.

Endovascular recanalization therapy (ERT) has been a standard of care for patients with acute ischemic stroke due to large artery occlusion (LAO) within 6 hours after onset, since five landmark ERT trials conducted by 2015 demonstrated its clinical benefit. Recently, two randomized clinical trials demonstrated that ERT, even in the late time window of up to 16 hours or 24 hours after last known normal time, improved the outcome of patients who had a target mismatch, defined as either clinical-core mismatch or perfusion-core mismatch, which prompted the update of national guidelines in several countries. Accordingly, to provide evidence-based and up-to-date recommendations for ERT in patients with acute LAO in Korea, the Clinical Practice Guidelines Committee of the Korean Stroke Society decided to revise the previous Korean Clinical Practice Guidelines of Stroke for ERT. For this update, the members of the writing group were appointed by the Korean Stroke Society and the Korean Society of Interventional Neuroradiology. After thoroughly reviewing the updated evidence from two recent trials and relevant literature, the writing members revised recommendations, for which formal consensus was achieved by convening an expert panel composed of 45 experts from the participating academic societies. The current guidelines are intended to help healthcare providers, patients, and their caregivers make well-informed decisions and to improve the quality of care regarding ERT. The ultimate decision for ERT in a particular patient must be made in light of circumstances specific to that patient.
Arteries ; Caregivers ; Cerebral Infarction ; Consensus ; Health Personnel ; Humans ; Korea ; Mechanical Thrombolysis ; Reperfusion ; Standard of Care ; Stroke ; Writing

Endovascular recanalization therapy (ERT) has been a standard of care for patients with acute ischemic stroke due to large artery occlusion (LAO) within 6 hours after onset, since five landmark ERT trials conducted by 2015 demonstrated its clinical benefit. Recently, two randomized clinical trials demonstrated that ERT, even in the late time window of up to 16 hours or 24 hours after last known normal time, improved the outcome of patients who had a target mismatch, defined as either clinical-core mismatch or perfusion-core mismatch, which prompted the update of national guidelines in several countries. Accordingly, to provide evidence-based and up-to-date recommendations for ERT in patients with acute LAO in Korea, the Clinical Practice Guidelines Committee of the Korean Stroke Society decided to revise the previous Korean Clinical Practice Guidelines of Stroke for ERT. For this update, the members of the writing group were appointed by the Korean Stroke Society and the Korean Society of Interventional Neuroradiology. After thoroughly reviewing the updated evidence from two recent trials and relevant literature, the writing members revised recommendations, for which formal consensus was achieved by convening an expert panel composed of 45 experts from the participating academic societies. The current guidelines are intended to help healthcare providers, patients, and their caregivers make well-informed decisions and to improve the quality of care regarding ERT. The ultimate decision for ERT in a particular patient must be made in light of circumstances specific to that patient.
Arteries ; Caregivers ; Cerebral Infarction ; Consensus ; Health Personnel ; Humans ; Korea ; Mechanical Thrombolysis ; Reperfusion ; Standard of Care ; Stroke ; Writing

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: The quality of anticoagulation is critical for ensuring the benefit of warfarin, but this has been less well studied in Korean ischemic stroke patients with atrial fibrillation (AF). METHODS: This study retrospectively analyzed the data of patients who had an AF-related ischemic stroke and were treated with long-term warfarin therapy in 16 Korean centers. The quality of warfarin therapy was primarily assessed by the time in therapeutic range [TTR; international normalized ratio (INR), 2.0–3.0] and additionally by the proportion of INR values within the therapeutic range. RESULTS: The long-term warfarin-treated cohort comprised 1,230 patients. They were aged 70.1±9.7 years (mean±SD), 42.5% were female, and their CHA₂DS₂-VASc score was 4.75±1.41. The TTR analysis included 33,941 INR measurements for 27,487 months: per patients, 27.6 (SD, 22.4) INR measurements for 22.4 (SD, 12.9) months. The mean TTR of individual patients was 49.1% (95% confidence interval, 47.9–50.3%), and the TTR quartiles were <34.5, 34.5–49.1, 49.1–64.5%, and >64.5%. None of the 16 centers achieved a mean TTR of >60%. Of all INR measurements, 44.6% were within the therapeutic range, 41.7% were <2.0, and 13.7% were >3.0. CONCLUSIONS: In Korean ischemic stroke patients who had AF, the quality of warfarin therapy was low and might be inadequate to effectively prevent recurrent stroke or systemic embolism.
Atrial Fibrillation* ; Cohort Studies ; Embolism ; Female ; Humans ; International Normalized Ratio ; Observational Study* ; Retrospective Studies* ; Stroke* ; Warfarin*

Patients with severe stroke due to acute large cerebral artery occlusion are likely to be severely disabled or dead without timely reperfusion. Previously, intravenous tissue plasminogen activator (IV-TPA) within 4.5 hours after stroke onset was the only proven therapy, but IV-TPA alone does not sufficiently improve the outcome of patients with acute large artery occlusion. With the introduction of the advanced endovascular therapy, which enables more fast and more successful recanalization, recent randomized trials consecutively and consistently demonstrated the benefit of endovascular recanalization therapy (ERT) when added to IV-TPA. Accordingly, to update the recommendations, we assembled members of the writing committee appointed by the Korean Stroke Society, the Korean Society of Interventional Neuroradiology, and the Society of Korean Endovascular Neurosurgeons. Reviewing the evidences that have been accumulated, the writing members revised recommendations, for which formal consensus was achieved by convening a panel composed of 34 experts from the participating academic societies. The current guideline provides the evidence-based recommendations for ERT in patients with acute large cerebral artery occlusion regarding patient selection, treatment modalities, neuroimaging evaluation, and system organization.
Arteries ; Cerebral Arteries ; Consensus ; Humans ; Neuroimaging ; Patient Selection ; Reperfusion ; Stroke* ; Tissue Plasminogen Activator ; Writing

Patients with severe stroke due to acute large cerebral artery occlusion are likely to be severely disabled or dead without timely reperfusion. Previously, intravenous tissue plasminogen activator (IV-TPA) within 4.5 hours after stroke onset was the only proven therapy, but IV-TPA alone does not sufficiently improve the outcome of patients with acute large artery occlusion. With the introduction of the advanced endovascular therapy, which enables more fast and more successful recanalization, recent randomized trials consecutively and consistently demonstrated the benefit of endovascular recanalization therapy (ERT) when added to IV-TPA. Accordingly, to update the recommendations, we assembled members of the writing committee appointed by the Korean Stroke Society, the Korean Society of Interventional Neuroradiology, and the Society of Korean Endovascular Neurosurgeons. Reviewing the evidences that have been accumulated, the writing members revised recommendations, for which formal consensus was achieved by convening a panel composed of 34 experts from the participating academic societies. The current guideline provides the evidence-based recommendations for ERT in patients with acute large cerebral artery occlusion regarding patient selection, treatment modalities, neuroimaging evaluation, and system organization.
Arteries ; Cerebral Arteries ; Consensus ; Humans ; Neuroimaging ; Patient Selection ; Reperfusion ; Stroke* ; Tissue Plasminogen Activator ; Writing