Clinical characteristics and treatment outcomes among stroke patients hospitalized to Nekemte referral hospital, western Ethiopia

Objectives: Stroke is the brain equivalent of a heart attack. It is one of the most common causes of morbidity and mortality worldwide and is a prominent cause of death, disability and dementia in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Hence, the purpose of this study was to assess the clinical characteristics and treatment outcomes among hospitalized stroke patients at Nekemte referral hospital (NRH). Patients and methods: Retrospective cross sectional study design was conducted on randomly selected stroke patients admitted to medical wards of NRH from 2013 to 2017. Results: Among 364 patients included in the study, 208 (57.1%) were males and the mean age of the patients was 59.66 +/- 13.4 years. Regarding types of stroke, 192 (52.7%) were diagnosed as having ischemic stroke. During admission 132 (36.3%) patients complained left side body weakness (hemiparesis) and the major risk factor identified was hypertension 230 (63.2%). Overall, 65.4% of patients had poor outcome while 34.6% of patients had good out comes (improved). Being illiterate/ unable to read and write (AOR = 3.94, 95% CI: 1.31-11.76, P = 0.01). attending secondary school (AOR= 3.6, 95% CI: 1.4-9.17, P= 0.007) and length of hospital stay >5 days (AOR = 2, 95% CI: 1.04-3.86, P = 0.037) were independent predictors of poor treatment outcome. Conclusion: About two third of the patients had poor treatment outcome. Educational status and mean length of hospital stays were independent predictors of poor treatment out-comes. An emergency care setup capable of early patient evaluation, identification and management of stroke complications is crucial to overcome early stroke related mortality. (C) 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.