Browsing by Author "Liang, Li"

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    ItemOpen Access
    An Initial Evaluation of the Impact of Pokémon GO on Physical Activity.
    (Journal of the American Heart Association, 2017-05-16) Xian, Ying; Xu, Hanzhang; Xu, Haolin; Liang, Li; Hernandez, Adrian F; Wang, Tracy Y; Peterson, Eric D
    Pokémon GO is a location-based augmented reality game. Using GPS and the camera on a smartphone, the game requires players to travel in real world to capture animated creatures, called Pokémon. We examined the impact of Pokémon GO on physical activity (PA).A pre-post observational study of 167 Pokémon GO players who were self-enrolled through recruitment flyers or online social media was performed. Participants were instructed to provide screenshots of their step counts recorded by the iPhone Health app between June 15 and July 31, 2016, which was 3 weeks before and 3 weeks after the Pokémon GO release date. Of 167 participants, the median age was 25 years (interquartile range, 21-29 years). The daily average steps of participants at baseline was 5678 (SD, 2833; median, 5718 [interquartile range, 3675-7279]). After initiation of Pokémon GO, daily activity rose to 7654 steps (SD, 3616; median, 7232 [interquartile range, 5041-9744], pre-post change: 1976; 95% CI, 1494-2458, or a 34.8% relative increase [P<0.001]). On average, 10 000 "XP" points (a measure of game progression) was associated with 2134 additional steps per day (95% CI, 1673-2595), suggesting a potential dose-response relationship. The number of participants achieving a goal of 10 000+ steps per day increased from 15.3% before to 27.5% after (odds ratio, 2.06; 95% CI, 1.70-2.50). Increased PA was also observed in subgroups, with the largest increases seen in participants who spent more time playing Pokémon GO, those who were overweight/obese, or those with a lower baseline PA level.Pokémon GO participation was associated with a significant increase in PA among young adults. Incorporating PA into gameplay may provide an alternative way to promote PA in persons who are attracted to the game.URL: http://www.clinicaltrials.gov. Unique identifier: NCT02888314.
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    Association Between Time to Treatment With Endovascular Reperfusion Therapy and Outcomes in Patients With Acute Ischemic Stroke Treated in Clinical Practice.
    (JAMA, 2019-07) Jahan, Reza; Saver, Jeffrey L; Schwamm, Lee H; Fonarow, Gregg C; Liang, Li; Matsouaka, Roland A; Xian, Ying; Holmes, DaJuanicia N; Peterson, Eric D; Yavagal, Dileep; Smith, Eric E
    Importance:Randomized clinical trials suggest benefit of endovascular-reperfusion therapy for large vessel occlusion in acute ischemic stroke (AIS) is time dependent, but the extent to which it influences outcome and generalizability to routine clinical practice remains uncertain. Objective:To characterize the association of speed of treatment with outcome among patients with AIS undergoing endovascular-reperfusion therapy. Design, Setting, and Participants:Retrospective cohort study using data prospectively collected from January 2015 to December 2016 in the Get With The Guidelines-Stroke nationwide US quality registry, with final follow-up through April 15, 2017. Participants were 6756 patients with anterior circulation large vessel occlusion AIS treated with endovascular-reperfusion therapy with onset-to-puncture time of 8 hours or less. Exposures:Onset (last-known well time) to arterial puncture, and hospital arrival to arterial puncture (door-to-puncture time). Main Outcomes and Measures:Substantial reperfusion (modified Thrombolysis in Cerebral Infarction score 2b-3), ambulatory status, global disability (modified Rankin Scale [mRS]) and destination at discharge, symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage (sICH), and in-hospital mortality/hospice discharge. Results:Among 6756 patients, the mean (SD) age was 69.5 (14.8) years, 51.2% (3460/6756) were women, and median pretreatment score on the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale was 17 (IQR, 12-22). Median onset-to-puncture time was 230 minutes (IQR, 170-305) and median door-to-puncture time was 87 minutes (IQR, 62-116), with substantial reperfusion in 85.9% (5433/6324) of patients. Adverse events were sICH in 6.7% (449/6693) of patients and in-hospital mortality/hospice discharge in 19.6% (1326/6756) of patients. At discharge, 36.9% (2132/5783) ambulated independently and 23.0% (1225/5334) had functional independence (mRS 0-2). In onset-to-puncture adjusted analysis, time-outcome relationships were nonlinear with steeper slopes between 30 to 270 minutes than 271 to 480 minutes. In the 30- to 270-minute time frame, faster onset to puncture in 15-minute increments was associated with higher likelihood of achieving independent ambulation at discharge (absolute increase, 1.14% [95% CI, 0.75%-1.53%]), lower in-hospital mortality/hospice discharge (absolute decrease, -0.77% [95% CI, -1.07% to -0.47%]), and lower risk of sICH (absolute decrease, -0.22% [95% CI, -0.40% to -0.03%]). Faster door-to-puncture times were similarly associated with improved outcomes, including in the 30- to 120-minute window, higher likelihood of achieving discharge to home (absolute increase, 2.13% [95% CI, 0.81%-3.44%]) and lower in-hospital mortality/hospice discharge (absolute decrease, -1.48% [95% CI, -2.60% to -0.36%]) for each 15-minute increment. Conclusions and Relevance:Among patients with AIS due to large vessel occlusion treated in routine clinical practice, shorter time to endovascular-reperfusion therapy was significantly associated with better outcomes. These findings support efforts to reduce time to hospital and endovascular treatment in patients with stroke.
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    Association of Intracerebral Hemorrhage Among Patients Taking Non-Vitamin K Antagonist vs Vitamin K Antagonist Oral Anticoagulants With In-Hospital Mortality.
    (JAMA, 2018-02) Inohara, Taku; Xian, Ying; Liang, Li; Matsouaka, Roland A; Saver, Jeffrey L; Smith, Eric E; Schwamm, Lee H; Reeves, Mathew J; Hernandez, Adrian F; Bhatt, Deepak L; Peterson, Eric D; Fonarow, Gregg C
    Although non-vitamin K antagonist oral anticoagulants (NOACs) are increasingly used to prevent thromboembolic disease, there are limited data on NOAC-related intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH).To assess the association between preceding oral anticoagulant use (warfarin, NOACs, and no oral anticoagulants [OACs]) and in-hospital mortality among patients with ICH.Retrospective cohort study of 141 311 patients with ICH admitted from October 2013 to December 2016 to 1662 Get With The Guidelines-Stroke hospitals.Anticoagulation therapy before ICH, defined as any use of OACs within 7 days prior to hospital arrival.In-hospital mortality.Among 141 311 patients with ICH (mean [SD] age, 68.3 [15.3] years; 48.1% women), 15 036 (10.6%) were taking warfarin and 4918 (3.5%) were taking NOACs preceding ICH, and 39 585 (28.0%) and 5783 (4.1%) were taking concomitant single and dual antiplatelet agents, respectively. Patients with prior use of warfarin or NOACs were older and had higher prevalence of atrial fibrillation and prior stroke. Acute ICH stroke severity (measured by the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale) was not significantly different across the 3 groups (median, 9 [interquartile range, 2-21] for warfarin, 8 [2-20] for NOACs, and 8 [2-19] for no OACs). The unadjusted in-hospital mortality rates were 32.6% for warfarin, 26.5% for NOACs, and 22.5% for no OACs. Compared with patients without prior use of OACs, the risk of in-hospital mortality was higher among patients with prior use of warfarin (adjusted risk difference [ARD], 9.0% [97.5% CI, 7.9% to 10.1%]; adjusted odds ratio [AOR], 1.62 [97.5% CI, 1.53 to 1.71]) and higher among patients with prior use of NOACs (ARD, 3.3% [97.5% CI, 1.7% to 4.8%]; AOR, 1.21 [97.5% CI, 1.11-1.32]). Compared with patients with prior use of warfarin, patients with prior use of NOACs had a lower risk of in-hospital mortality (ARD, -5.7% [97.5% CI, -7.3% to -4.2%]; AOR, 0.75 [97.5% CI, 0.69 to 0.81]). The difference in mortality between NOAC-treated patients and warfarin-treated patients was numerically greater among patients with prior use of dual antiplatelet agents (32.7% vs 47.1%; ARD, -15.0% [95.5% CI, -26.3% to -3.8%]; AOR, 0.50 [97.5% CI, 0.29 to 0.86]) than among those taking these agents without prior antiplatelet therapy (26.4% vs 31.7%; ARD, -5.0% [97.5% CI, -6.8% to -3.2%]; AOR, 0.77 [97.5% CI, 0.70 to 0.85]), although the interaction P value (.07) was not statistically significant.Among patients with ICH, prior use of NOACs or warfarin was associated with higher in-hospital mortality compared with no OACs. Prior use of NOACs, compared with prior use of warfarin, was associated with lower risk of in-hospital mortality.
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    Association of Preceding Antithrombotic Treatment With Acute Ischemic Stroke Severity and In-Hospital Outcomes Among Patients With Atrial Fibrillation.
    (JAMA, 2017-03) Xian, Ying; O'Brien, Emily C; Liang, Li; Xu, Haolin; Schwamm, Lee H; Fonarow, Gregg C; Bhatt, Deepak L; Smith, Eric E; Olson, DaiWai M; Maisch, Lesley; Hannah, Deidre; Lindholm, Brianna; Lytle, Barbara L; Pencina, Michael J; Hernandez, Adrian F; Peterson, Eric D
    Importance:Antithrombotic therapies are known to prevent stroke for patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) but are often underused in community practice. Objectives:To examine the prevalence of patients with acute ischemic stroke with known history of AF who were not receiving guideline-recommended antithrombotic treatment before stroke and to determine the association of preceding antithrombotic therapy with stroke severity and in-hospital outcomes. Design, Setting, and Participants:Retrospective observational study of 94 474 patients with acute ischemic stroke and known history of AF admitted from October 2012 through March 2015 to 1622 hospitals participating in the Get With the Guidelines-Stroke program. Exposures:Antithrombotic therapy before stroke. Main Outcomes and Measures:Stroke severity as measured by the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS; range of 0-42, with a higher score indicating greater stroke severity and a score ≥16 indicating moderate or severe stroke), and in-hospital mortality. Results:Of 94 474 patients (mean [SD] age, 79.9 [11.0] years; 57.0% women), 7176 (7.6%) were receiving therapeutic warfarin (international normalized ratio [INR] ≥2) and 8290 (8.8%) were receiving non-vitamin K antagonist oral anticoagulants (NOACs) preceding the stroke. A total of 79 008 patients (83.6%) were not receiving therapeutic anticoagulation; 12 751 (13.5%) had subtherapeutic warfarin anticoagulation (INR <2) at the time of stroke, 37 674 (39.9%) were receiving antiplatelet therapy only, and 28 583 (30.3%) were not receiving any antithrombotic treatment. Among 91 155 high-risk patients (prestroke CHA2DS2-VASc score ≥2), 76 071 (83.5%) were not receiving therapeutic warfarin or NOACs before stroke. The unadjusted rates of moderate or severe stroke were lower among patients receiving therapeutic warfarin (15.8% [95% CI, 14.8%-16.7%]) and NOACs (17.5% [95% CI, 16.6%-18.4%]) than among those receiving no antithrombotic therapy (27.1% [95% CI, 26.6%-27.7%]), antiplatelet therapy only (24.8% [95% CI, 24.3%-25.3%]), or subtherapeutic warfarin (25.8% [95% CI, 25.0%-26.6%]); unadjusted rates of in-hospital mortality also were lower for those receiving therapeutic warfarin (6.4% [95% CI, 5.8%-7.0%]) and NOACs (6.3% [95% CI, 5.7%-6.8%]) compared with those receiving no antithrombotic therapy (9.3% [95% CI, 8.9%-9.6%]), antiplatelet therapy only (8.1% [95% CI, 7.8%-8.3%]), or subtherapeutic warfarin (8.8% [95% CI, 8.3%-9.3%]). After adjusting for potential confounders, compared with no antithrombotic treatment, preceding use of therapeutic warfarin, NOACs, or antiplatelet therapy was associated with lower odds of moderate or severe stroke (adjusted odds ratio [95% CI], 0.56 [0.51-0.60], 0.65 [0.61-0.71], and 0.88 [0.84-0.92], respectively) and in-hospital mortality (adjusted odds ratio [95% CI], 0.75 [0.67-0.85], 0.79 [0.72-0.88], and 0.83 [0.78-0.88], respectively). Conclusions and Relevance:Among patients with atrial fibrillation who had experienced an acute ischemic stroke, inadequate therapeutic anticoagulation preceding the stroke was prevalent. Therapeutic anticoagulation was associated with lower odds of moderate or severe stroke and lower odds of in-hospital mortality.
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    Comparison of Clinical Care and In-Hospital Outcomes of Asian American and White Patients With Acute Ischemic Stroke.
    (JAMA neurology, 2019-04) Song, Sarah; Liang, Li; Fonarow, Gregg C; Smith, Eric E; Bhatt, Deepak L; Matsouaka, Roland A; Xian, Ying; Schwamm, Lee H; Saver, Jeffrey L
    Importance:Although overall stroke incidence and mortality in the United States is improving, little is known about the characteristics and clinical outcomes of acute ischemic stroke in Asian American individuals. Objective:To compare the characteristics, care, and outcomes of Asian American and white patients with acute ischemic stroke. Design, Setting, Participants:Retrospective analysis of Asian American and white patients admitted with a primary diagnosis of acute ischemic stroke to hospitals participating in the Get With The Guidelines-Stroke (GWTG-Stroke) program between April 1, 2004, and July 31, 2016. The GWTG-Stroke database is a prospectively collected stroke quality improvement registry sponsored by the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association. Main Outcomes and Measures:Multivariable logistic regression models assessed the association of Asian American race/ethnicity, clinical outcomes, and quality measures. Results:The study population of 1 772 299 patients (mean [SD] age, 72.4 [14.2] years; 51.3% female) consisted of 64 337 Asian American patients (3.6%) and 1 707 962 white patients (96.4%) admitted to 2171 GWTG-Stroke hospitals with acute ischemic stroke. After adjustment for patient and hospital variables, Asian American patients were seen with greater stroke severity compared with white patients (National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale [NIHSS] score ≥16) (odds ratio [OR], 1.35; 95% CI, 1.30-1.40; P < .001), manifested higher in-hospital mortality (OR, 1.14; 95% CI, 1.09-1.19; P < .001), had longer length of stay (OR, 1.17; 95% CI, 1.14-1.20; P < .001), and were less likely to ambulate independently at discharge (OR, 0.84; 95% CI, 0.79-0.90; P < .001). Although Asian American patients had fewer intravenous tissue plasminogen activator (IV tPA) administrations than white patients (OR, 0.95; 95% CI, 0.91-0.98; P = .003), they had more symptomatic hemorrhage after tPA (OR, 1.36; 95% CI, 1.20-1.55; P < .001) and overall post-tPA complications (OR, 1.31; 95% CI, 1.18-1.46; P < .001). Asian American patients had better quality measure adherence overall than white patients, including rehabilitation (OR, 1.27; 95% CI, 1.18-1.36; P < .001), door to tPA within 60 minutes (OR, 1.14; 95% CI, 1.06-1.22; P < .001), and intensive statin therapy (OR, 1.14; 95% CI, 1.10-1.18; P < .001). After adjustment for stroke severity, Asian American patients had lower in-hospital mortality than white patients (OR, 0.95; 95% CI, 0.91-0.99; P = .008). Conclusions and Relevance:Asian American patients manifested more severe ischemic strokes, were less likely to receive IV tPA, and had worse functional outcomes than white patients. These findings warrant additional research toward improving clinical outcomes for Asian American patients with acute ischemic stroke.
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    Comparison of performance achievement award recognition with primary stroke center certification for acute ischemic stroke care.
    (J Am Heart Assoc, 2013-10-14) Fonarow, Gregg C; Liang, Li; Smith, Eric E; Reeves, Mathew J; Saver, Jeffrey L; Xian, Ying; Hernandez, Adrian F; Peterson, Eric D; Schwamm, Lee H; GWTG-Stroke Steering Committee & Investigators
    BACKGROUND: Hospital certification and recognition programs represent 2 independent but commonly used systems to distinguish hospitals, yet they have not been directly compared. This study assessed acute ischemic stroke quality of care measure conformity by hospitals receiving Primary Stroke Center (PSC) certification and those receiving the American Heart Association's Get With The Guidelines-Stroke (GWTG-Stroke) Performance Achievement Award (PAA) recognition. METHODS AND RESULTS: The patient and hospital characteristics as well as performance/quality measures for acute ischemic stroke from 1356 hospitals participating in the GWTG-Stroke Program 2010-2012 were compared. Hospitals were classified as PAA+/PSC+ (hospitals n = 410, patients n = 169,302), PAA+/PSC- (n = 415, n = 129,454), PAA-/PSC+ (n = 88, n = 26,386), and PAA-/PSC- (n = 443, n = 75,565). A comprehensive set of stroke measures were compared with adjustment for patient and hospital characteristics. Patient characteristics were similar by PAA and PSC status but PAA-/PSC- hospitals were more likely to be smaller and nonteaching. Measure conformity was highest for PAA+/PSC+ and PAA+/PSC- hospitals, intermediate for PAA-/PSC+ hospitals, and lowest for PAA-/PSC- hospitals (all-or-none care measure 91.2%, 91.2%, 84.3%, and 76.9%, respectively). After adjustment for patient and hospital characteristics, PAA+/PSC+, PAA+/PSC-, and PAA-/PSC+ hospitals had 3.15 (95% CIs 2.86 to 3.47); 3.23 (2.93 to 3.56) and 1.72 (1.47 to 2.00), higher odds for providing all indicated stroke performance measures to patients compared with PAA-/PSC- hospitals. CONCLUSIONS: While both PSC certification and GWTG-Stroke PAA recognition identified hospitals providing higher conformity with care measures for patients hospitalized with acute ischemic stroke, PAA recognition was a more robust identifier of hospitals with better performance.
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    Effect of a Multifaceted Quality Improvement Intervention on Hospital Personnel Adherence to Performance Measures in Patients With Acute Ischemic Stroke in China: A Randomized Clinical Trial.
    (JAMA, 2018-07) Wang, Yilong; Li, Zixiao; Zhao, Xingquan; Wang, Chunjuan; Wang, Xianwei; Wang, David; Liang, Li; Liu, Liping; Wang, Chunxue; Li, Hao; Shen, Haipeng; Bettger, Janet; Pan, Yuesong; Jiang, Yong; Yang, Xiaomeng; Zhang, Changqing; Han, Xiujie; Meng, Xia; Yang, Xin; Kang, Hong; Yuan, Weiqiang; Fonarow, Gregg C; Peterson, Eric D; Schwamm, Lee H; Xian, Ying; Wang, Yongjun; GOLDEN BRIDGE—AIS Investigators
    In China and other parts of the world, hospital personnel adherence to evidence-based stroke care is limited.To determine whether a multifaceted quality improvement intervention can improve hospital personnel adherence to evidence-based performance measures in patients with acute ischemic stroke (AIS) in China.A multicenter, cluster-randomized clinical trial among 40 public hospitals in China that enrolled 4800 patients hospitalized with AIS from August 10, 2014, through June 20, 2015, with 12-month follow-up through July 30, 2016.Twenty hospitals received a multifaceted quality improvement intervention (intervention group; 2400 patients), including a clinical pathway, care protocols, quality coordinator oversight, and performance measure monitoring and feedback. Twenty hospitals participated in the stroke registry with usual care (control group; 2400 patients).The primary outcome was hospital personnel adherence to 9 AIS performance measures, with co-primary outcomes of a composite of percentage of performance measures adhered to, and as all-or-none. Secondary outcomes included in-hospital mortality and long-term outcomes (a new vascular event, disability [modified Rankin Scale score, 3-5], and all-cause mortality) at 3, 6, and 12 months.Among 4800 patients with AIS enrolled from 40 hospitals and randomized (mean age, 65 years; women, 1757 [36.6%]), 3980 patients (82.9%) completed the 12-month follow-up of the trial. Patients in intervention group were more likely to receive performance measures than those in the control groups (composite measure, 88.2% vs 84.8%, respectively; absolute difference, 3.54% [95% CI, 0.68% to 6.40%], P = .02). The all-or-none measure did not significantly differ between the intervention and control groups (53.8% vs 47.8%, respectively; absolute difference, 6.69% [95% CI, -0.41% to 13.79%], P = .06). New clinical vascular events were significantly reduced in the intervention group compared with the control group at 3 months (3.9% vs 5.3%, respectively; difference, -2.03% [95% CI, -3.51% to -0.55%]; P = .007), 6 months (6.3% vs 7.8%, respectively; difference, -2.18% [95% CI, -4.0% to -0.35%]; P = .02) and 12 months (9.1% vs 11.8%, respectively; difference, -3.13% [95% CI, -5.28% to -0.97%]; P = .005).Among 40 hospitals in China, a multifaceted quality improvement intervention compared with usual care resulted in a statistically significant but small improvement in hospital personnel adherence to evidence-based performance measures in patients with acute ischemic stroke when assessed as a composite measure, but not as an all-or-none measure. Further research is needed to understand the generalizability of these findings.ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT02212912.
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    Initiation, Continuation, or Withdrawal of Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme Inhibitors/Angiotensin Receptor Blockers and Outcomes in Patients Hospitalized With Heart Failure With Reduced Ejection Fraction.
    (J Am Heart Assoc, 2017-02-11) Gilstrap, Lauren G; Fonarow, Gregg C; Desai, Akshay S; Liang, Li; Matsouaka, Roland; DeVore, Adam D; Smith, Eric E; Heidenreich, Paul; Hernandez, Adrian F; Yancy, Clyde W; Bhatt, Deepak L
    BACKGROUND: Guidelines recommend continuation or initiation of guideline-directed medical therapy, including angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors/angiotensin II receptor blockers (ACEi/ARB), in hospitalized patients with heart failure with reduced ejection fraction. METHODS AND RESULTS: Using the Get With The Guidelines-Heart Failure Registry, we linked clinical data from 16 052 heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (ejection fraction ≤40%) patients with Medicare claims data. We divided ACEi/ARB-eligible patients into 4 categories based on admission and discharge ACEi/ARB use: continued (reference group), started, discontinued, or not started on therapy. A multivariable Cox proportional hazard model was used to determine the association between ACEi/ARB category and outcomes. Most, 90.5%, were discharged on ACEi/ARB (59.6% continued and 30.9% newly started). Of those discharged without ACEi/ARB, 1.9% were discontinued, and 7.5% were eligible but not started. Thirty-day mortality was 3.5% for patients continued and 4.1% for patients started on ACEi/ARB. In contrast, 30-day mortality was 8.8% for patients discontinued (adjusted hazard ratio [HRadj] 1.92; 95% CI 1.32-2.81; P<0.001) and 7.5% for patients not started (HRadj 1.50; 95% CI 1.12-2.00; P=0.006). The 30-day readmission rate was lowest among patients continued or started on therapy. One-year mortality was 28.2% for patients continued and 29.7% for patients started on ACEi/ARB compared to 41.6% for patients discontinued (HRadj 1.35; 95% CI 1.13-1.61; P<0.001) and 41.7% (HRadj 1.28; 95% CI 1.14-1.43; P<0.001) for patients not started on therapy. CONCLUSIONS: Compared with continuation, withdrawal of ACEi/ARB during heart failure hospitalization is associated with higher rates of postdischarge mortality and readmission, even after adjustment for severity of illness.
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    International Comparison of Patient Characteristics and Quality of Care for Ischemic Stroke: Analysis of the China National Stroke Registry and the American Heart Association Get With The Guidelines--Stroke Program.
    (Journal of the American Heart Association, 2018-10) Wangqin, Runqi; Laskowitz, Daniel T; Wang, Yongjun; Li, Zixiao; Wang, Yilong; Liu, Liping; Liang, Li; Matsouaka, Roland A; Saver, Jeffrey L; Fonarow, Gregg C; Bhatt, Deepak L; Smith, Eric E; Schwamm, Lee H; Prvu Bettger, Janet; Hernandez, Adrian F; Peterson, Eric D; Xian, Ying
    Background Adherence to evidence-based guidelines is an important quality indicator; yet, there is lack of assessment of adherence to performance measures in acute ischemic stroke for most world regions. Methods and Results We analyzed 19 604 patients with acute ischemic stroke in the China National Stroke Registry and 194 876 patients in the Get With The Guidelines--Stroke registry in the United States from June 2012 to January 2013. Compared with their US counterparts, Chinese patients were younger, had a lower prevalence of comorbidities, and had similar median, lower mean, and less variability in National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (median 4 [25th percentile-75th percentile, 2-7], mean 5.4±5.6 versus median 4 [1-10], mean 6.8±7.7). Chinese patients were more likely to experience delays from last known well to hospital arrival (median 1318 [330-3209] versus 644 [142-2055] minutes), less likely to receive thrombolytic therapy (2.5% versus 8.1%), and more likely to experience treatment delays (door-to-needle time median 95 [72-112] versus 62 [49-85] minutes). Adherence to early and discharge antithrombotics, smoking cessation counseling, and dysphagia screening were relatively high (eg >80%) in both countries. Large gaps existed between China and the United States with regard to the administration of thrombolytics within 3 hours (18.3% versus 83.6%), door-to-needle time ≤60 minutes (14.6% versus 48.0%), deep venous thrombosis prophylaxis (65.0% versus 97.8%), anticoagulation for atrial fibrillation (21.0% versus 94.4%), lipid treatment (66.3% versus 95.8%), and rehabilitation assessment (58.8% versus 97.4%). Conclusions We found significant differences in clinical characteristics and gaps in adherence for certain performance measures between China and the United States. Additional efforts are needed for continued improvements in acute stroke care and secondary prevention in both nations, especially China.
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    Patterns, predictors, variations, and temporal trends in emergency medical service hospital prenotification for acute ischemic stroke.
    (J Am Heart Assoc, 2012-08) Lin, Cheryl B; Peterson, Eric D; Smith, Eric E; Saver, Jeffrey L; Liang, Li; Xian, Ying; Olson, Daiwai M; Shah, Bimal R; Hernandez, Adrian F; Schwamm, Lee H; Fonarow, Gregg C
    BACKGROUND#ENTITYSTARTX02014;: Emergency medical services (EMS) hospital prenotification of an incoming stroke patient is guideline recommended as a means of increasing the timeliness with which stroke patients are evaluated and treated. Still, data are limited with regard to national use of, variations in, and temporal trends in EMS prenotification and associated predictors of its use. METHODS AND RESULTS#ENTITYSTARTX02014;: We examined 371 988 patients with acute ischemic stroke who were transported by EMS and enrolled in 1585 hospitals participating in Get With The Guidelines-Stroke from April 1, 2003, through March 31, 2011. Prenotification occurred in 249 197 EMS-transported patients (67.0%) and varied widely by hospital (range, 0% to 100%). Substantial variations by geographic regions and by state, ranging from 19.7% in Washington, DC, to 93.4% in Montana, also were noted. Patient factors associated with lower use of prenotification included older age, diabetes mellitus, and peripheral vascular disease. Prenotification was less likely for black patients than for white patients (adjusted odds ratio 0.94, 95% confidence interval 0.92-0.97, P<0.0001). Hospital factors associated with greater EMS prenotification use were absence of academic affiliation, higher annual volume of tissue plasminogen activator administration, and geographic location outside the Northeast. Temporal improvements in prenotification rates showed a modest general increase, from 58.0% in 2003 to 67.3% in 2011 (P temporal trend <0.0001). CONCLUSIONS#ENTITYSTARTX02014;: EMS hospital prenotification is guideline recommended, yet among patients transported to Get With The Guidelines-Stroke hospitals it is not provided for 1 in 3 EMS-arriving patients with acute ischemic stroke and varies substantially by hospital, state, and region. These results support the need for enhanced implementation of stroke systems of care. (J Am Heart Assoc. 2012;1:e002345 doi: 10.1161/JAHA.112.002345.).
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    Racial differences in the prevalence and outcomes of atrial fibrillation among patients hospitalized with heart failure.
    (J Am Heart Assoc, 2013-09-26) Thomas, Kevin L; Piccini, Jonathan P; Liang, Li; Fonarow, Gregg C; Yancy, Clyde W; Peterson, Eric D; Hernandez, Adrian F; Get With the Guidelines Steering Committee and Hospitals
    BACKGROUND: The intersection of heart failure (HF) and atrial fibrillation (AF) is common, but the burden of AF among black patients with HF is poorly characterized. We sought to determine the prevalence of AF, characteristics, in-hospital outcomes, and warfarin use associated with AF in patients hospitalized with HF as a function of race. METHODS AND RESULTS: We analyzed data on 135 494 hospitalizations from January 2006 through January 2012 at 276 hospitals participating in the American Heart Association's Get With The Guidelines HF Program. Multivariable logistic regression models using generalized estimating equations approach for risk-adjusted comparison of AF prevalence, in-hospital outcomes, and warfarin use. In this HF population, 53 389 (39.4%) had AF. Black patients had markedly less AF than white patients (20.8% versus 44.8%, P < 0.001). Adjusting for risk factors and hospital characteristics, black race was associated with significantly lower odds of AF (adjusted odds ratio 0.52, 95% CI 0.48 to 0.55, P < 0.0001). There were no racial differences in in-hospital mortality; however, black patients had a longer length of stay relative to white patients. Black patients compared with white patients with AF were less likely to be discharged on warfarin (adjusted odds ratio 0.76, 95% CI 0.69 to 0.85, P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Despite having many risk factors for AF, black patients, relative to white patients hospitalized for HF, had a lower prevalence of AF and lower prescription of guideline-recommended warfarin therapy.
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    Recent Myocardial Infarction is Associated With Increased Risk in Older Adults With Acute Ischemic Stroke Receiving Thrombolytic Therapy.
    (Journal of the American Heart Association, 2019-08) Inohara, Taku; Liang, Li; Kosinski, Andrzej S; Smith, Eric E; Schwamm, Lee H; Hernandez, Adrian F; Bhatt, Deepak L; Fonarow, Gregg C; Peterson, Eric D; Xian, Ying
    Background Intravenous recombinant tissue-type plasminogen activator (rtPA) remains the only medical therapy to improve outcomes for acute ischemic stroke (AIS), but the safety of rtPA in AIS patients with a history of recent myocardial infarction (MI) remains controversial. Methods and Results We sought to determine whether the presence of recent MI would alter the risk of mortality and rtPA-related complications. Multivariate logistic regression models were used to compare in-hospital outcomes between rtPA-treated AIS patients with recent MI within 3 months and those with no history of MI from the Get With The Guidelines-Stroke hospitals between February 2009 and December 2015. Among 40 396 AIS patients aged ≥65 years treated with rtPA, 241 (0.6%) had recent MI, of which 19.5% were ST-segment-elevation myocardial infarction. Patients with recent MI had more severe stroke than those without (median National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale [interquartile range]: 13.0 [7.0-20.0] versus 11.0 [6.0-18.0]). Recent MI was associated with an increased risk of mortality compared with no history of MI (17.4% versus 9.0%; adjusted odds ratio 1.60 [95% CI, 1.10-2.33]; P=0.014), but no statistically significant differences in rtPA-related complications (13.5% versus 9.4%; adjusted odds ratio 1.28 [0.88-1.86]; P=0.19). Recent ST-segment-elevation myocardial infarction was associated with higher risk of death and rtPA-related complications, but non-ST-segment-elevation myocardial infarction was not. Conclusions Among older AIS patients treated with rtPA, recent MI was associated with an increased risk of in-hospital mortality. Further investigations are necessary to determine whether the benefit of rtPA outweighs its risk among AIS patients with recent MI.
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    Short- and long-term rehospitalization and mortality for heart failure in 4 racial/ethnic populations.
    (J Am Heart Assoc, 2014-10-16) Vivo, Rey P; Krim, Selim R; Liang, Li; Neely, Megan; Hernandez, Adrian F; Eapen, Zubin J; Peterson, Eric D; Bhatt, Deepak L; Heidenreich, Paul A; Yancy, Clyde W; Fonarow, Gregg C
    BACKGROUND: The degree to which outcomes following hospitalization for acute heart failure (HF) vary by racial and ethnic groups is poorly characterized. We sought to compare 30-day and 1-year rehospitalization and mortality rates for HF among 4 race/ethnic groups. METHODS AND RESULTS: Using the Get With The Guidelines-HF registry linked with Medicare data, we compared 30-day and 1-year outcomes between racial/ethnic groups by using a multivariable Cox proportional hazards model adjusting for clinical, hospital, and socioeconomic status characteristics. We analyzed 47 149 Medicare patients aged ≥65 years who had been discharged for HF between 2005 and 2011: there were 39 213 whites (83.2%), 4946 blacks (10.5%), 2347 Hispanics (5.0%), and 643 Asians/Pacific Islanders (1.4%). Relative to whites, blacks and Hispanics had higher 30-day and 1-year unadjusted readmission rates but lower 30-day and 1-year mortality; Asians had similar 30-day readmission rates but lower 1-year mortality. After risk adjustment, blacks had higher 30-day and 1-year CV readmission than whites but modestly lower short- and long-term mortality; Hispanics had higher 30-day and 1-year readmission rates and similar 1-year mortality than whites, while Asians had similar outcomes. When socioeconomic status data were added to the model, the majority of associations persisted, but the difference in 30-day and 1-year readmission rates between white and Hispanic patients became nonsignificant. CONCLUSIONS: Among Medicare patients hospitalized with HF, short- and long-term readmission rates and mortality differed among the 4 major racial/ethnic populations and persisted even after controlling for clinical, hospital, and socioeconomic status variables.
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    Temporal Trends in Care and Outcomes of Patients Receiving Fibrinolytic Therapy Compared to Primary Percutaneous Coronary Intervention: Insights From the Get With The Guidelines Coronary Artery Disease (GWTG-CAD) Registry.
    (J Am Heart Assoc, 2016-10-06) Hira, Ravi S; Bhatt, Deepak L; Fonarow, Gregg C; Heidenreich, Paul A; Ju, Christine; Virani, Salim S; Bozkurt, Biykem; Petersen, Laura A; Hernandez, Adrian F; Schwamm, Lee H; Eapen, Zubin J; Albert, Michelle A; Liang, Li; Matsouaka, Roland A; Peterson, Eric D; Jneid, Hani
    BACKGROUND: Timely reperfusion after ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) improves survival. Guidelines recommend primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PPCI) within 90 minutes of arrival at a PCI-capable hospital. The alternative is fibrinolysis within 30 minutes for those in those for whom timely transfer to a PCI-capable hospital is not feasible. METHODS AND RESULTS: We identified STEMI patients receiving reperfusion therapy at 229 hospitals participating in the Get With the Guidelines-Coronary Artery Disease (GWTG-CAD) database (January 1, 2003 through December 31, 2008). Temporal trends in the use of fibrinolysis and PPCI, its timeliness, and in-hospital mortality outcomes were assessed. We also assessed predictors of fibrinolysis versus PPCI and compliance with performance measures. Defect-free care was defined as 100% compliance with all performance measures. We identified 29 190 STEMI patients, of whom 2441 (8.4%) received fibrinolysis; 38.2% of these patients achieved door-to-needle times ≤30 minutes. Median door-to-needle times increased from 36 to 60 minutes (P=0.005) over the study period. Among PPCI patients, median door-to-balloon times decreased from 94 to 64 minutes (P<0.0001) over the same period. In-hospital mortality was higher with fibrinolysis than with PPCI (4.6% vs 3.3%, P=0.001) and did not change significantly over time. Patients receiving fibrinolysis were less likely to receive defect-free care compared with their PPCI counterparts. CONCLUSIONS: Use of fibrinolysis for STEMI has decreased over time with concomitant worsening of door-to-needle times. Over the same time period, use of PPCI increased with improvement in door-to-balloon times. In-hospital mortality was higher with fibrinolysis than with PPCI. As reperfusion for STEMI continues to shift from fibrinolysis to PPCI, it will be critical to ensure that door-to-needle times and outcomes do not worsen.