Loyola Neurologist José Biller, MD, is Co-Author of Major Pediatric Stroke Study
June 5, 2018Categories: Neurology & Neurosurgery, Pediatrics, Stroke
Tags: Neurology Neurosurgery, Pediatrics
MAYWOOD, IL – A major international study has found that 2.6% of infants and children hospitalized for stroke die in the hospital.
Loyola Medicine neurologist José Biller, MD, a nationally known expert on strokes in children, is among the co-authors of the study, published in the journal Pediatrics. First author is Lauren A. Beslow, MD, of the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia.
The retrospective study included 915 infants younger than one month and 2,273 children aged one month to 18 years who were stroke patients at 87 hospitals in 24 countries. The type of stroke examined in the study, called ischemic, is caused by blood clots and is the most common type.
The study found that during their hospitalizations for ischemic stroke, 1.5% of the infants and 3.1% of the children died, with an overall mortality rate of 2.6%.
Researchers classified the causes of death as stroke alone, a combination of an underlying disease and stroke or simply an underlying disease. Nearly two-thirds (65%) of hospital deaths with a known cause were related to the stroke and/or subsequent deficits.
Risk factors for dying in the hospital included congenital heart disease and having a severe type of ischemic stroke known as "posterior plus anterior circulation."
Hispanic ethnicity also was associated with higher mortality, but black infants and children were not at higher risk of dying. The reason for the higher Hispanic mortality rate is not known. Future studies "should explore whether ethnic differences in mortality rates are related to disparities in care," researchers wrote.
Also at higher risk of dying were infants and children who did not have seizures. The reason may be that infants who present with seizures might be diagnosed and treated more quickly for their strokes, researchers wrote.
Childhood ischemic strokes affect 1.2 to 2.4 per 100,000 children per year in developed countries. Although deaths from ischemic and other types of stroke appear to have declined, stroke remains among the top 10 causes of death among children in the United States.
Researchers wrote that improved stroke recognition, earlier supportive care, more rapid intervention and neuroprotective treatments "are critical for decreasing mortality after stroke in the pediatric population."
The study is titled, "Mortality After Pediatric Arterial Ischemic Stroke."
About Loyola Medicine
Loyola Medicine, a member of Trinity Health, is a nationally ranked academic, quaternary care system based in Chicago's western suburbs. The three-hospital system includes Loyola University Medical Center (LUMC), Gottlieb Memorial Hospital, MacNeal Hospital, as well as convenient locations offering primary care, specialty care and immediate care services from nearly 2,000 physicians throughout Cook, Will and DuPage counties. LUMC is a 547-licensed-bed hospital in Maywood that includes the William G. and Mary A. Ryan Center for Heart & Vascular Medicine, the Cardinal Bernardin Cancer Center, the John L. Keeley, MD, Emergency Department, a Level 1 trauma center, Illinois's largest burn center, the Nancy W. Knowles Orthopaedic Institute, a certified comprehensive stroke center, transplant center and a children’s hospital. Having delivered compassionate care for over 50 years, Loyola also trains the next generation of caregivers through its academic affiliation with Loyola University Chicago’s Stritch School of Medicine and Marcella Niehoff School of Nursing.
For more information, visit loyolamedicine.org. You can also follow Loyola Medicine on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram or X (formerly known as Twitter).
About Trinity Health
Trinity Health is one of the largest not-for-profit, faith-based health care systems in the nation. It is a family of 127,000 colleagues and more than 38,300 physicians and clinicians caring for diverse communities across 26 states. Nationally recognized for care and experience, the Trinity Health system includes 93 hospitals, 107 continuing care locations, the second largest PACE program in the country, 142 urgent care locations and many other health and well-being services. In fiscal year 2024, the Livonia, Michigan-based health system invested $1.3 billion in its communities in the form of charity care and other community benefit programs. For more information, visit us at www.trinity-health.org, or follow us on LinkedIn, Facebook, and X (formerly known as Twitter).