Trends in stroke reperfusion treatment and outcomes in New Zealand

BACKGROUND Intravenous thrombolysis (IVT) and endovascular thrombectomy (EVT) can help reverse stroke symptoms in selected patients but are both time sensitive interventions. AIMS To report current stroke reperfusion rates and quality measures as well as trends over time in New Zealand. METHOD Since 2015 New Zealand treatment centres have been mandated to enter prospectively all IVT and EVT patients into a low-cost National Stroke Register. Data were cleaned, and missing data added where possible through contact with individual hospitals. Main outcomes include treatment delays, vital status at day 7 and complications. RESULTS In 2018, there were 719 of 7173 (10.0%) patients with ischaemic stroke or stroke unspecified treated with IVT, up from 389 of 5963 (6.5%) patients in 2015 (P