Therapeutic route of patients at the acute phase of their stroke in Burkina Faso.

INTRODUCTION

The advent of the neurovascular units and thrombolysis has improved support for stroke in developed countries. Our objective was to study the therapeutic route of stroke patients in Burkina Faso, a country with limited resources.

METHODS

It was a prospective cohort study over a period of 4months, from February 02, 2014 to June 05, 2014, in medical emergencies and Neurology department of the teaching hospital Yalgado Ouedraogo. The study focused on patients diagnosed with stroke through brain imaging when they first entered hospital or during hospitalization. Variables of the study included socio-demographic data of the patients, route of the patients, nature of the stroke, treatment and clinical course.

RESULTS

The time between the onset of clinical signs and the first contact with a peripheral public health unit extended from 30min to 24h with an average of 6h and 56min. The minimum time between the first contact with a peripheral public health unit and medical emergencies of the Teaching Hospital Yalgado Ouédraogo was 15min, and the maximum, two weeks. After their arrival in medical emergencies, patients spent on average 21h and 18min to achieve the cerebral CT scan. Concerning the treatment, the thrombolysis, which was not available yet, had never been prescribed, while 19% of patients were eligible according to the 4h30mn period criteria.

CONCLUSION

Our study shows that the long delay in the access of neurological expertise is, in most cases, related to the therapeutic route of patients. Thus, the setting-up of a stroke sector would improve the management and the prognosis of cases in Burkina Faso.