Evidence map›Paper›PMID 34894018›Full record

ArticleEuropean journal of neurology2022

Association of the COVID-19 outbreak with acute stroke care in Switzerland.

Gian Marco De Marchis, Patrick R Wright, Patrik Michel, Davide Strambo, Emmanuel Carrera, Elisabeth Dirren, Andreas R Luft, Susanne Wegener, Carlo W Cereda, Georg Kägi and 29 more

Abstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in European journal of neurology, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 6 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
6citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

6 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. The stroke meta-metric, Defect-Free Care, was maintained year-over-year within the Florida stroke registry during the COVID-19 pandemic.Journal of stroke and cerebrovascular diseases : the official journal of National Stroke Association · 2025
    Article
  2. Article
  3. Global stroke statistics 2023: Availability of reperfusion services around the world.International journal of stroke : official journal of the International Stroke Society · 2024
    Review
  4. Review
  5. Article
  6. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

39 authors.

Gian Marco De MarchisDepartment of Neurology and Stroke Center, University Hospital Basel, Basel, Switzerland.ORCID 0000-0002-0342-9780
Patrick R WrightDepartment of Clinical Research, University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland.
Patrik MichelDepartment of Neurology, Lausanne University Hospital-Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Vaudois (CHUV), Lausanne, Switzerland.
Davide StramboDepartment of Neurology, Lausanne University Hospital-Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Vaudois (CHUV), Lausanne, Switzerland.
Emmanuel CarreraDepartment of Neurology, University Hospital Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland.
Elisabeth DirrenDepartment of Neurology, University Hospital Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland.
Andreas R LuftDepartment of Neurology, University Hospital Zurich and University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.
Susanne WegenerDepartment of Neurology, University Hospital Zurich and University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.ORCID 0000-0003-4369-7023
Carlo W CeredaDepartment of Neurology and Stroke Center, Neurocenter of Southern Switzerland, Lugano, Switzerland.
Georg KägiDepartment of Neurology, Cantonal Hospital St Gallen, St Gallen, Switzerland.
Jochen VehoffDepartment of Neurology, Cantonal Hospital St Gallen, St Gallen, Switzerland.
Henrik GensickeDepartment of Neurology and Stroke Center, University Hospital Basel, Basel, Switzerland.
Philippe LyrerDepartment of Neurology and Stroke Center, University Hospital Basel, Basel, Switzerland.
Krassen NedeltchevDepartment of Neurology, Cantonal Hospital Aarau, Aarau, Switzerland.
Timo KhalesDepartment of Neurology, Cantonal Hospital Aarau, Aarau, Switzerland.
Manuel BologneseStroke Center, Kantonspital Lucerne, Luzern, Switzerland.
Stephan SalmenStroke Unit, Spitalzentrum Biel, Biel, Switzerland.
Rolf SturzeneggerStroke Unit, Cantonal Hospital Graubünden, Chur, Switzerland.
Christophe BonvinDepartment of Neurology, Hôpital du Valais, Sion, Switzerland.
Christian BergerStroke Unit, Cantonal Hospital Grabs, Grabs, Switzerland.
Ludwig ScheloskyStroke Unit, Cantonal Hospital Münsterlingen, Münsterlingen, Switzerland.
Marie-Luise MonoStroke Unit, Stadtspital Waid and Triemli, Zurich, Switzerland.
Biljana RodicStroke Unit, Cantonal Hospital Winterthur, Winterthur, Switzerland.
Andrea von RedingStroke Unit, Cantonal Hospital Winterthur, Winterthur, Switzerland.
Guido SchweglerStroke Unit, Spital Limmattal, Schlieren, Switzerland.
Alexander A TarnutzerStroke Unit, Cantonal Hospital Baden, Baden, Switzerland.
Friedrich MedlinStroke Unit, HFR Fribourg-Hôpital Cantonal, Fribourg, Switzerland.ORCID 0000-0002-8477-899X
Andrea M HummStroke Unit, HFR Fribourg-Hôpital Cantonal, Fribourg, Switzerland.
Nils PetersDepartment of Neurology and Stroke Center, Hirslanden Clinic Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.
Morin BeyelerDepartment of Neurology and Stroke Center, University Hospital Bern-Inselspital, Bern, Switzerland.
Lilian KriemlerDepartment of Neurology and Stroke Center, University Hospital Basel, Basel, Switzerland.
David BerviniDepartment of Neurosurgery, University Hospital Bern, Bern, Switzerland.
Javier FandinoDepartment of Neurosurgery, Hirslanden Clinic Aarau and Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.
Lars G HemkensDepartment of Clinical Research, University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland.
Pasquale MordasiniDepartment of Neuroradiology, University Hospital Bern, Bern, Switzerland.
Marcel ArnoldDepartment of Neurology and Stroke Center, University Hospital Bern-Inselspital, Bern, Switzerland.
Urs FischerDepartment of Neurology and Stroke Center, University Hospital Basel, Basel, Switzerland.
Leo H BonatiDepartment of Neurology and Stroke Center, University Hospital Basel, Basel, Switzerland.
Swiss Stroke Registry Investigators

Funding

Schweizerische Herzstiftung
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

background and purposeIn Switzerland, the COVID-19 incidence during the first pandemic wave was high. Our aim was to assess the association of the outbreak with acute stroke care in Switzerland in spring 2020.

methodsThis was a retrospective analysis based on the Swiss Stroke Registry, which includes consecutive patients with acute cerebrovascular events admitted to Swiss Stroke Units and Stroke Centers. A linear model was fitted to the weekly admission from 2018 and 2019 and was used to quantify deviations from the expected weekly admissions from 13 March to 26 April 2020 (the "lockdown period"). Characteristics and 3-month outcome of patients admitted during the lockdown period were compared with patients admitted during the same calendar period of 2018 and 2019.

resultsIn all, 28,310 patients admitted between 1 January 2018 and 26 April 2020 were included. Of these, 4491 (15.9%) were admitted in the periods March 13-April 26 of the years 2018-2020. During the lockdown in 2020, the weekly admissions dropped by up to 22% compared to rates expected from 2018 and 2019. During three consecutive weeks, weekly admissions fell below the 5% quantile (likelihood 0.38%). The proportion of intracerebral hemorrhage amongst all registered admissions increased from 7.1% to 9.3% (p = 0.006), and numerically less severe strokes were observed (median National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale from 3 to 2, p = 0.07).

conclusionsAdmissions and clinical severity of acute cerebrovascular events decreased substantially during the lockdown in Switzerland. Delivery and quality of acute stroke care were maintained.

Indexed as

COVID-19StrokeCommunicable Disease ControlHumansPandemicsRetrospective StudiesSARS-CoV-2SwitzerlandCOVID-19epidemiologystroke

Identifiers

PMID34894018
PMCPMC9305499

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.