Guidelines for the management of patients with acute ischemic stroke. A statement for healthcare professionals from a special writing group of the Stroke Council, American Heart Association.

I n 1991, about 500 000 Americans had a stroke (400 000 had an ischemic stroke) and more than 143 000 died. In 1994 the annual economic costs of stroke due to health care expenses and lost productivity are estimated to be nearly 20 billion. Caplan 3 concludes that past failures to establish effective therapies for stroke are due to problems in clinical trial design, lack of interest in care of stroke, and lack of available technologies to evaluate patients. However, with advances in diagnosis and treatment, stroke can now be managed as the life-threatening emergency that it is. In 1993 the American Heart Association included emergent stroke care as part of its special resuscitation situations for basic and advanced life support. This report builds on that statement.