Abstract Background and aims Timely access to acute stroke reperfusion therapies depends on geographic proximity to capable hospitals and remains heterogeneous across regions. We applied MAPSTROKE to quantify Italy’s regional/national access to reperfusion-capable hospitals and to identify targeted facility upgrades to reach a ≥90% access benchmark. Methods Using MAPSTROKE geospatial modelling, 2023 stroke incidence and population were mapped on a fine hexagonal grid. Hospitals were classified as Comprehensive Stroke Centres (CSC), Primary Stroke Centres (PSC), Acute Stroke-Ready Hospitals (ASRH), or Potential Acute Stroke Centres (PASC). Road-network isochrones were generated to estimate the proportion of incident acute ischemic strokes (AIS) within 45 minutes of any reperfusion-capable hospital (ASRH/PSC/CSC). Regions with 90% coverage were optimised via a Partial Set Covering model to minimise PASC-to-ASRH conversions; sensitivity analyses used 30- and 60-minute thresholds. Results Among 535 hospitals (80 CSCs, 132 PSCs, 22 ASRHs, 301 PASCs), 91.7% of incident AIS were within 45 minutes of a reperfusion-capable hospital. Regional coverage ranged from 33.9% (Basilicata) to 98.4% (Liguria). National 45-minute CSC (EVT-capable) coverage was 75.7%, ranging from 93.2% (Lombardia) to 0% (Basilicata, Molise). Coverage at 30 and 60 minutes was 79.6% and 96%, respectively. After converting 23 PASCs to ASRHs in seven under-covered regions, all regions except Basilicata achieved ≥90% coverage. Conclusions Italy has high overall geographic access to reperfusion-capable hospitals, but substantial regional inequities persist, particularly for CSC/EVT access; MAPSTROKE supports targeted upgrades to reduce gaps. Funded by the WSO Pilot Research Proposal Grant and the Angels Initiative/Boehringer Ingelheim (contract nos. 782566 and 1005232). Conflict of interest E.N. is member of the medical and scientific advisory board of Cercare Medical. L.A.C. acknowledges receiving a grant from the World Stroke Organization and the Angels Initiative/Boehringer Ingelheim (contract nos. 782566 and 1005232) for this work. A.C., E.F., A.S.F., L.L.D., M.B., M.D., P.S., V.C., and D.T. have nothing to disclose. Figure 1 - belongs to Results
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Ettore Nicolini
Policlinico Umberto I
Antonio Ciacciarelli
Policlinico Umberto I
Enrica Franchini
Ospedale di Bolzano
European Stroke Journal
Sapienza University of Rome
Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul
Policlinico Umberto I
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Nicolini et al. (Fri,) studied this question.
synapsesocial.com/papers/69fd7fcdbfa21ec5bbf0862e — DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/esj/aakag023.420