Evidence map›Paper›PMID 37021167›Full record

ArticleEuropean stroke journal2023

Is the socioeconomic inequality in stroke prognosis changing over time and does quality of care play a role?

Vibe Bolvig Hyldgård, Rikke Søgaard, Jan Brink Valentin, Theis Lange, Dorte Damgaard, Søren Paaske Johnsen

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in European stroke journal, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
4citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
–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

4 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

  1. A systematic review of causal pathways of socioeconomic inequalities in stroke.International journal of stroke : official journal of the International Stroke Society · 2026
    Pooled it
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  3. Article
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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

6 authors.

Vibe Bolvig HyldgårdDepartment of Clinical Research, University of Southern Denmark, Denmark.ORCID 0000-0003-1207-9708
Rikke SøgaardDepartment of Clinical Research, University of Southern Denmark, Denmark.
Jan Brink ValentinDanish Center for Clinical Health Services Research, Department of Clinical Medicine, Aalborg University and Aalborg University Hospital, Aalborg, Denmark.
Theis LangeSection of Biostatistics, University of Copenhagen, Denmark.
Dorte DamgaardDepartment of Neurology, Aarhus University Hospital, Denmark.
Søren Paaske JohnsenDanish Center for Clinical Health Services Research, Department of Clinical Medicine, Aalborg University and Aalborg University Hospital, Aalborg, Denmark.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Introduction: In a publicly financed healthcare system we aimed to study the development in socioeconomic disparity in ischemic stroke outcomes over time. In addition, we study whether the healthcare system affects these outcomes through the quality of early stroke care when adjustments are made for various patient characteristics incl. comorbidity and stroke severity. Patients and methods: Using nationwide, detailed individual-level register-data we analysed how income-related and education-related inequality in 30-day mortality and 30-day readmission risk developed between 2003 and 2018. In addition, focusing on income-related inequality, we applied mediation analyses to estimate the mediating role of quality of acute stroke care on 30-day mortality and 30-day readmission. Results: A total of 97,779 individual ischemic stroke patients were registered in Denmark with a first ever stroke in the study period. Three-point-seven percent died within 30 days of their index-admission and 11.5% were readmitted within 30 days of discharge. The income-related inequality in mortality remained virtually unchanged over time from an RR of 0.53 (95% CI: 0.38; 0.74) in 2003-06 to RR 0.69 (95% CI: 0.53; 0.89)) in 2015-18 when high income was compared to low income (Family income-time interaction: RR 1.00 (95% CI: 0.98-1.03)). A similar but less uniform trend was found for the education-related inequality in mortality (Education-time interaction: RR 1.00 (95% CI: 0.97-1.04)). The income-related disparity in 30-day readmission was smaller than in 30-day mortality and it diminished over time from 0.70 (95% CI: 0.58; 0.83) to 0.97 (95% CI: 0.87; 1.10). The mediation analysis showed no systematic mediating effect of quality of care on neither mortality nor readmission. However, it cannot be ruled out that residual confounding may have washed out some mediating effects. Discussion and Conclusion: The socioeconomic inequality in stroke mortality and re-admission risk has yet to be eliminated. Additional studies from different settings are warranted in order to clarify the impact of socioeconomic inequality of quality of acute stroke care.

Indexed as

Ischemic StrokeStrokeHumansPovertyPrognosisQuality of Health CareHealthcare disparitiesinequalitymediation analysisquality of health care

Identifiers

PMID37021167
PMCPMC10069209

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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.