8:18 a.m. #42 The right training helps emergency physicians use CT to diagnose stroke. An hour of structured teaching allowed emergency physicians to dramatically improve their ability to read a computer tomography (CT) scan and correctly diagnose different types of strokes. A CT scan, which uses X-rays to generate an image of the brain, can determine whether a stroke has occurred and identifies the type of stroke: ischemic (result of blockage) or hemorrhagic (result of bleeding). It is critical in determining what treatment patients receive. Eight emergency physicians took a 30-minute test to gauge their pre-teaching CT diagnosing capabilities and participated in a one-hour session of scripted teaching before being tested again. After 45 days, the physicians were retested. Hemorrhagic stroke was correctly identified by physicians 68 percent of the time prior to teaching, 100 percent of the time after teaching, and 100 percent of the time 45 days after the class. Physicians correctly identified the absence of hemorrhage 94 percent of the time prior to teaching, 94 percent of the time after teaching, and 92 percent of the time after 45 days. There were similar results with the ability to identify large-territory ischemic strokes. Researchers say this testing and teaching method can greatly increase an emergency physicians ability to correctly diagnose stroke on CT and, because of improved confidence, may increase the number of patients treated.
Brian Silver, Hen
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Contact: Carole Bullock
210-582-7159
American Heart Association
8-Feb-2002