Evidence map›Paper›PMID 38971748›Full record

ArticleScandinavian journal of trauma, resuscitation and emergency medicine2024

Parallel activation of helicopter and ground transportation after dispatcher identification of suspected anterior large vessel occlusion stroke in rural areas: a proof-of-concept case with modeling from the LESTOR trial.

Max Henningsen, Matthias L Herrmann, Simone Meier, Ulrike Bergmann, Hans-Jörg Busch, Christian A Taschner, Jochen Brich

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In one paragraph

Article in Scandinavian journal of trauma, resuscitation and emergency medicine, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
4citing 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

4 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. EDEN - Enhanced Dispatch for Efficient Neurointervention: mathematical model from national data.Scandinavian journal of trauma, resuscitation and emergency medicine · 2026
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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

7 authors.

Max HenningsenDepartment of Neurology and Neuroscience, Faculty of Medicine and Medical Center, University of Freiburg, Breisacher Str. 64, Freiburg, Germany. max.henningsen@uniklinik-freiburg.de.ORCID 0009-0006-4266-9935
Matthias L HerrmannDepartment of Neurology and Neuroscience, Faculty of Medicine and Medical Center, University of Freiburg, Breisacher Str. 64, Freiburg, Germany.
Simone MeierDepartment of Neurology and Neuroscience, Faculty of Medicine and Medical Center, University of Freiburg, Breisacher Str. 64, Freiburg, Germany.
Ulrike BergmannDepartment of Neurology and Neuroscience, Faculty of Medicine and Medical Center, University of Freiburg, Breisacher Str. 64, Freiburg, Germany.
Hans-Jörg BuschDepartment of Emergency Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and Medical Center, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany.
Christian A TaschnerDepartment of Neuroradiology, Faculty of Medicine and Medical Center, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany.
Jochen BrichDepartment of Neurology and Neuroscience, Faculty of Medicine and Medical Center, University of Freiburg, Breisacher Str. 64, Freiburg, Germany.

Funding

Gemeinsame Bundesausschuss 01VSF19053
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundWhen stroke patients with suspected anterior large vessel occlusion (aLVO) happen to live in rural areas, two main options exist for prehospital transport: (i) the drip-and-ship (DnS) strategy, which ensures rapid access to intravenous thrombolysis (IVT) at the nearest primary stroke center but requires time-consuming interhospital transfer for endovascular thrombectomy (EVT) because the latter is only available at comprehensive stroke centers (CSC); and (ii) the mothership (MS) strategy, which entails direct transport to a CSC and allows for faster access to EVT but carries the risk of IVT being delayed or even the time window being missed completely. The use of a helicopter might shorten the transport time to the CSC in rural areas. However, if the aLVO stroke is only recognized by the emergency service on site, the helicopter must be requested in addition, which extends the prehospital time and partially negates the time advantage. We hypothesized that parallel activation of ground and helicopter transportation in case of aLVO suspicion by the dispatcher (aLVO-guided dispatch strategy) could shorten the prehospital time in rural areas and enable faster treatment with IVT and EVT.

methodsAs a proof-of-concept, we report a case from the LESTOR trial where the dispatcher suspected an aLVO stroke during the emergency call and dispatched EMS and HEMS in parallel. Based on this case, we compare the provided aLVO-guided dispatch strategy to the DnS and MS strategies regarding the times to IVT and EVT using a highly realistic modeling approach.

resultsWith the aLVO-guided dispatch strategy, the patient received IVT and EVT faster than with the DnS or MS strategies. IVT was administered 6 min faster than in the DnS strategy and 22 min faster than in the MS strategy, and EVT was started 47 min earlier than in the DnS strategy and 22 min earlier than in the MS strategy.

conclusionIn rural areas, parallel activation of ground and helicopter emergency services following dispatcher identification of stroke patients with suspected aLVO could provide rapid access to both IVT and EVT, thereby overcoming the limitations of the DnS and MS strategies.

Indexed as

Air AmbulancesRural PopulationStrokeAgedEmergency Medical ServicesHumansMaleProof of Concept StudyThrombectomyThrombolytic TherapyTime-to-TreatmentTransportation of Patients

Identifiers

PMID38971748
PMCPMC11227698

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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.