Not Calling 911 Slows Stroke Treatment

More than one-third of people having a stroke in the United States don’t call 911, a study shows. And that can make a big difference in their treatment. The most effective treatment for ischemic stroke, the most common type, is use of clot-busting drugs. But they work best when given within 3 hours of the start of symptoms. In the new study, people who called 911 arrived faster than those who got to the hospital on their own. They also got treatment faster. The study looked at treatment of about 200,000 stroke patients from 2003 to 2010. Not everyone is eligible to get clot-busting drugs. Among those who were, 67% of those who came by ambulance got the drugs within 3 hours of when their symptoms started. Only 44% of those who got to the hospital on their own met that timetable. About 79% of those who got to the hospital within 2 hours of the start of symptoms came by ambulance.