Telestroke Triage in Suspected Stroke Patients
For patients and families
In plain language
An automatic summary of structured registry data. It is an orientation aid, not a substitute for the official protocol or a physician assessment.
- What is being studied
- The protocol lists: Telestroke triage, Standard Care (in control arm).
- Who it may be relevant to
- Registry conditions: Stroke. Basic parameters: from 18 years · All.
- What needs checking
- Age, condition and sex are only basic indicators. Prior treatment, laboratory values and other mandatory requirements appear in the eligibility criteria below.
- Where it takes place
- Netherlands
- Next step
- Save the trial, show it to the treating physician, and confirm current recruitment with the study center. Costs, documents and travel →
Unsure about the terms? Read our patient guide →
Official title
Ambulance Stroke Triage Assisted by Telemedicine (ASTRAL) Trial.
Overview
The ASTRAL trial is a randomized study in patients with suspected stroke in the ambulance setting. The study evaluates whether prehospital telestroke consultation, in addition to standard care, can reduce unnecessary stroke code activations and improve patient triage, treatment efficiency, and resource use. Participants are randomized to telestroke triage plus standard care or standard care alone. Outcomes include unnecessary stroke code activation, patient allocation, treatment times, functional outcome, safety, and cost-effectiveness.
Detailed description
The Ambulance Stroke Triage Assisted by Telemedicine (ASTRAL) trial is a prospective, randomized controlled trial in suspected stroke patients attended by ambulance professionals in the RAV Hollands Midden region. Patients aged 18 years or older with stroke code activation during office hours and symptom onset within 24 hours are randomized 1:1 to telestroke triage plus standard care or standard care alone. The intervention consists of real-time video and audio consultation with an on-duty neurologist who advises on stroke probability, destination, and urgency of transport, while ambulance professionals retain final decision authority. The primary endpoint is unnecessary stroke code activation. Secondary endpoints include allocation accuracy, safety, door-to-needle and door-to-groin times, modified Rankin Scale at 3 months, health-related quality of life, healthcare utilization, stakeholder satisfaction, and cost-effectiveness. Outcome assessors for 3-month follow-up measures are blinded to allocation. Data are collected in Castor EDC, and analyses follow the intention-to-treat principle
Interventions
- Other Telestroke triage
Live tele-neurologist consultation via the SMART Triage platform during ambulance assessment of suspected stroke. - Other Standard Care (in control arm)
Usual prehospital stroke triage according to RAV Hollands Midden protocols without telestroke consultation.
Primary outcome measures
- Appropriate Patient Allocation [Time frame: Immediately after the prehospital triage decision]
- Unnecessary Stroke Code Activation [Time frame: Through initial emergency department stroke evaluation]
Eligibility criteria
Inclusion criteria
- Age 18 years or older
- Stroke code activation by ambulance professional during office hours
- Symptom onset < 24 hours or uncertain onset
- The patient is deemed capable of understanding the study information and making a decision about participation/opt-out
Exclusion criteria
\- Age under 18 years
Criteria are shown verbatim from the registry (in English). Final eligibility is always assessed by the study center.
Healthy volunteers: No
Study design
- Allocation
- Randomized
- Model
- Parallel assignment
- Masking
- Single blind
- Primary purpose
- Health services research
Study locations
Netherlands · 1 center
- Leiden University Medical Center — Leiden
Publications
- Duvekot MHC, Venema E, Rozeman AD, Moudrous W, Vermeij FH, Biekart M, Lingsma HF, Maasland L, Wijnhoud AD, Mulder LJMM, Alblas KCL, van Eijkelenburg RPJ, Buijck BI, Bakker J, Plaisier AS, Hensen JH, Lycklama A Nijeholt GJ, van Doormaal PJ, van Es ACGM, van der Lugt A, Kerkhoff H, Dippel DWJ, Roozenbeek B; PRESTO investigators. Comparison of eight prehospital stroke scales to detect intracranial la PMID 33422191
- Brauckmann V, Hudasch D, Graff P, Riecke T, Aktas G, Mayor J, Macke C. Prehospital neurological emergencies- a survey on the state of prehospital neurological assessment by emergency medical professionals. BMC Emerg Med. 2024 Sep 11;24(1):164. doi: 10.1186/s12873-024-01076-w. PMID 39256650
- Nederlandse Vereniging voor Neurologie (NVN). Richtlijn Stroke 2021: Acute fase. Utrecht: NVN; 2021.
- Powers WJ, Rabinstein AA, Ackerson T, Adeoye OM, Bambakidis NC, Becker K, Biller J, Brown M, Demaerschalk BM, Hoh B, Jauch EC, Kidwell CS, Leslie-Mazwi TM, Ovbiagele B, Scott PA, Sheth KN, Southerland AM, Summers DV, Tirschwell DL. Guidelines for the Early Management of Patients With Acute Ischemic Stroke: 2019 Update to the 2018 Guidelines for the Early Management of Acute Ischemic Stroke: A Guid PMID 31662037
Identifiers
NCT: NCT07657117 · N26.022