Why heparin?

[Doczilla]

oops - me bad... I read DVT - Nonetheless, tPA in stroke is nowhere near as effective as when used in ACS. The outcome works out roughly in thirds - one third get better, one third have no change and one third DIE. I think if I was having a mild stroke I'd waive the tPA - on the other hand, if my stroke was a big one I would probably have it - for an arterial blockage of the leg - no way.

This is incorrect. tPA has a 3-6% mortality rate when used in acute stroke. This is what I tell patients (actually, it's better when drawn out with little dots): of 21 patients with a stroke, 9 will get some improvement with or without the tPA, 9 will not get any improvement with or without the tPA, 2 will get better because of the tPA, and 1 will die as a result of the tPA.

'zilla

[mshow00]

That was along the lines of what I was thinking, thank you.

[akroeze]

This is incorrect. tPA has a 3-6% mortality rate when used in acute stroke. This is what I tell patients (actually, it's better when drawn out with little dots): of 21 patients with a stroke, 9 will get some improvement with or without the tPA, 9 will not get any improvement with or without the tPA, 2 will get better because of the tPA, and 1 will die as a result of the tPA.

'zilla

I had never heard those statistics before, that's interesting.

So in reality out of 21 people tPA only makes a difference for 3? It kills one and saves two.

Not very good odds really