Pre-hospital:
If an apoplexy or TIA is suspected, the patient should be admitted to a stroke unit immediately (Herold 2023).
The therapeutic measures depend on the cause of the stroke and differ significantly. As it is not possible to distinguish clinically between an ischemic and a hemorrhagic insult, treatment is only possible after precise diagnosis by imaging examinations and must never be initiated pre-hospital (Herold 2023).
- Neither heparin nor ASA should be administered pre-hospital, nor should i.m. injections be given (Herold 2023).
- Peripheral access should be placed on the non-paretic arm if possible
- The upper body should be positioned high (Herold 2023) = positioning to avoid intracranial pressure (Litmathe 2016)
- If hypoxemia is < 95% (Mader 2020), administer oxygen via the nasogastric tube until O2 saturation is > 95%.
- Particular care should be taken to ensure that no time is lost, as the time window for possible lysis is max. 4.5 h (Herold 2018)
- Blood glucose measurement: From a BG < 60 mg / dl, glucose should be administered i.v. and from a BG > 200 mg / dl, insulin should be administered (Litmathe 2016).
- Blood pressure measurement:
- From a systolic value < 120 mm Hg, a crystalloid infusion should be administered
- With systolic RR values of ≥ 220 mm Hg, the blood pressure can be reduced by approx. 15 % through careful titration with medication (Mader 2020)
Inpatient:
The aim here is to
- Securing the vital functions
- Checking breathing with determination of blood gas values and any necessary intubation or controlled ventilation. Hypoxia and / or hypercapnia should be avoided at all costs.
- Control of water and electrolyte balance including blood glucose measurement
- Tube feeding or parenteral nutrition:
- Patients with dysphagia and / or impaired consciousness should be fed by tube or parenteral nutrition
- Control of bladder and bowel function:
- If necessary, a urinary catheter should be inserted
- Bowel function should be monitored regularly.
- Thromboembolism prophylaxis:
- Low-dose heparinization is required for immobile patients. This applies regardless of the cause of the apoplexy. Exercise should also be performed at an early stage (Herold 2018)
- Blood pressure:
- Ischemic insult
High-normal or slightly elevated blood pressure values should be aimed for in the acute phase, as hypertension is usually reactive in this phase. Constant RR checks are obligatory. There is only a medical need to lower blood pressure in the case of values >220 / 120 mmHg and in the case of a hypertensive emergency with the risk of hypertensive encephalopathy, pulmonary edema or angina pectoris. Blood pressure should always be lowered gently and not by more than approx. 20 % compared to the initial value. The following are particularly suitable for intravenous blood pressure lowering: captopril, metoprolol and urapidil (Herold 2018).
- Hemorrhagic insult:
In the case of a hemorrhagic insult, it is recommended to lower the systolic blood pressure to values of 140 - 179 mmHg.
- Therapy of any existing concomitant diseases
- Rehabilitation
- Early rehabilitation should be initiated in the hospital in the form of physiotherapy, respiratory gymnastics and speech therapy.
- Further rehabilitation then takes place in appropriately equipped clinics (Herold 2018)
- Ischaemic insult
As soon as there is evidence of an ischemic infarction, platelet aggregation inhibitors should be used, e.g. 100 - 300 mg ASA / d orally. If swallowing is impaired, the dose should be administered intravenously (Herold 2018). If medication is possible within 3 h of the event, the neurological symptoms usually improve. However, this therapy has no influence on mortality (Kasper 2015).
Any fever that occurs should be reduced with medication, e.g. with paracetamol (Litmathe 2016), as fever significantly worsens brain damage. The same applies to hyperglycemia from a glucose value of > 11.1 mmol / l or > 200 mg / dl (Kasper 2015).
- Reperfusion measures:
The effectiveness of systemic thrombolysis (i.v. rtPA) with e.g. alteplase was demonstrated in randomized, controlled trials in 1995 and that of mechanical neurothrombectomy in 2014. However, these are complementary treatment methods, as combined or bridging procedures are always preferred where possible. In Germany, approx. 10 % were treated with i.v. rtPA in 2010; the target value is 30 % (Litmathe 2016).
- Endovascular thrombectomy (EVT)
Another treatment method for ischemic stroke is EVT (Jorgensen 2018). In a study by Wee (2017), up to 61.7 % of patients showed a significant neurological improvement within 24 hours of undergoing EVT, while mortality during the inpatient stay was 7.1 %.
- Hemorrhagic insult
- Increased intracranial pressure
If an intracerebral hemorrhage (ICB) is detected, particular attention should be paid to the intracranial pressure. If necessary, this can be treated conservatively or surgically.
Conservatively by elevating the body by approx. 30°, positioning the head in a frame and possibly intubation. Long-term hyperventilation should be avoided in particular, as this can worsen cerebral perfusion. Osmotherapy with e.g. mannitol 50 mg i.v. every 6 h is also recommended (Herold 2018).
Neurosurgical treatment includes a decompression craniotomy in the presence of a large medial infarction or brain stem decompression in the case of a large posterior fossa infarction. In the case of a cerebellar infarction with occlusive hydrocephalus, temporary ventricular drainage is recommended (Herold 2018).
- Minimally invasive surgery
An attempt is made to remove the hematoma in a minimally invasive manner (Gil-Garcia 2022).