Why must thrombolytic therapy be initiated immediately upon onset of ischemic stroke?
             In Canada a stroke occurs every ten minutes, it is the fourth leading cause of death and is the number one cause of long-term disability. Canadians spend a total of 3 million days in hospital because of stroke costing the Canadian economy $2.7 billion a year, with the average acute care stay costing approximately $27,500 per stroke (Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada, 2002). Currently there are 350,000 Canadians living with the effects of stroke with 50,000 new strokes occurring every year and the incidence is increasing as Canadian's age. Of every 100 people experiencing a stroke in Canada, 10 are so severely disabled they require long-term care, 40 are left with moderate to severe impairment or disability, 25 will have minor impairment or disability, 10 will completely recover and 15 will die. Fewer than 50% of stroke patients ever return to work (Canadian Stroke Network, 2004).
             This paper will use the pathopysiology concepts of ischemic stroke to answer this question: Why must thrombolytic therapy be initiated immediately upon onset of ischemic stroke? This is a very clinically important question because early identification of stroke is the single most important tool in the reduction of disability. The largest barrier to patients receiving thrombolytic therapy is the failure to identify signs and symptoms and seek immediate treatment. A recent study found only 5% of patients experiencing stroke symptoms sought medical attention within the three-hour time window. Patients delayed seeking treatment because symptoms were not recognized, the patient and family waited for symptoms to go away, and the patient and family believed nothing could be done, or that it was not an emergency. These findings indicate the need to educate the community about stroke risk factors, signs and symptoms, and the appropriate response (Kongable, 1997). W...