A case-control study of the effectiveness of tissue plasminogen activator on 6 month patients-reported outcomes and health care utilization

We Examined the Benefit of Tissue Plasminogen Activator , Delivered As Part of Usual Stroke Mgmt., on Patient-reported Outcomes and Hlth. Care Utiliz.. Using A Case Contr. Des., Patients Who Received TPA As Part of Usual Stroke Mgmt. Were Compared with Patients Who Would Have Received TPA Had They Arrived to the Hosp. Within the Therapeut. Time Window. Data Were Collected from Surveys 6 Months after Stroke Using Standardized Patient-reported Outcome Measures and Questions about Hlth. Care Utiliz.. Demogr. and Med. Data Were Acquired from Hosp. Records. Patients Were Matched on Stroke Severity, Age, Race, and Gender. Matching Was Done with 1:2 Ratio of TPA to Controls. Results Were Compared between Groups with 1-tailed Tests because of A Directionally Specific Hypothesis in Favor of the TPA Grp.. the TPA and Contr. Groups Were Matched Across Variables, Except for Stroke Severity, Which Was Better in the Contr. Grp.; Subsequent Analyses Controlled for This Mismatch. the TPA Grp. Reported Better Phys. Funct., Commun., Cogn. Ability, Depressive Symptomatology, and Qual. of Life/participation Compared with the Contr. Grp.. Fewer People in the TPA Grp. Reported Skilled Nursing Facil. Stays. Emergency Dept. Visits, and Rehospitalizations after Their Stroke Compared with Controls. Reports of Other Postacute Serv. Were Not Different between Groups. although It is Known That TPA Reduces Disability, This is the First Stud. to Demonstrate the Effectiveness of TPA in Improving Meaningful, Patientreported Outcomes. Thus, Use of TPA Provides A Large Benefit to the Daily Lives of People with Ischemic Stroke.