The effect of perceived risks on the demand for vaccination: results from a discrete choice experiment.

The demand for vaccination against infectious diseases involves a choice between vaccinating and not vaccinating, in which there is a trade-off between the benefits and costs of each option. The aim of this paper is to investigate these trade-offs and to estimate how the perceived prevalence and severity of both the disease against which the vaccine is given and any vaccine associated adverse events (VAAE) might affect demand. A discrete choice experiment (DCE) was used to elicit stated preferences from a representative sample of 369 U.K. mothers of children below 5 years of age, for three hypothetical vaccines. Cost was included as an attribute, which enabled estimation of the willingness to pay for different vaccines having differing levels of the probability of occurrence and severity of both the infection and VAAE. The results suggest that the severity of the health effects associated with both the diseases and VAAEs exert an important influence on the demand for vaccination, whereas the probability of these events occurring was not a significant predictor. This has important implications for public health policy, which has tended to focus on the probability of these health effects as the main influence on decision making. Our results also suggest that anticipated regrets about the consequences of making the wrong decision also exert an influence on demand

Functional status at 30 and 90 days after mild ischaemic stroke.

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVE: This study compares the global disability status of patients who had a mild ischaemic stroke at 30 and 90 days poststroke, as measured by the modified Rankin Scale (mRS), and identifies predictors of change in disability status between 30 and 90 days. METHODS: The study population included 1339 patients who had a ischaemic stroke enrolled in the Mild and Rapidly Improving Stroke Study with National Institutes of Health (NIH) stroke score 0-5 and mRS measurements at 30 and 90 days. Outcomes were (1) Improvement defined as having mRS \u3e1 at 30 days and mRS 0-1 at 90 days OR mRS \u3e2 at 30 days and mRS 0-2 at 90 days and (2) Worsening defined as an increase of ≥2 points or a worsening from mRS of 1 at 30 days to 2 at 90 days. Demographic and clinical characteristics at hospital arrival were abstracted from medical records, and regression models were used to identify predictors of functional improvement and decline from 30 to 90 days post-stroke. Significant predictors were mutually adjusted in multivariable models that also included age and stroke severity. RESULTS: Fifty-seven per cent of study participants had no change in mRS value from 30 to 90 days. Overall, there was moderate agreement in mRS between the two time points (weighted kappa=0.59 (95% CI 0.56 to 0.62)). However, worsening on the mRS was observed in 7.54% of the study population from 30 to 90 days, and 17.33% improved. Participants of older age (per year OR 1.02, 95% CI 1.00 to 1.03), greater stroke severity (per NIH Stroke Scale (NIHSS) point at admission OR 1.17, 95% CI 1.03 to 1.34), and those with no alteplase treatment (OR 1.72, 95% CI 1.11 to 2.69) were more likely to show functional decline after mutual adjustment. DISCUSSION: A quarter of all mild ischaemic stroke participants exhibited functional changes between 30 and 90 days, suggesting that the 30-day outcome may insufficiently represent long-term recovery in mild stroke and longer follow-up may be clinically necessary. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: NCT02072681

Frequency and Prognostic Significance of Clinical Fluctuations Before Hospital Arrival in Stroke.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Clinical fluctuations in ischemic stroke symptoms are common, but fluctuations before hospital arrival have not been previously characterized. METHODS: A standardized qualitative assessment of fluctuations before hospital arrival was obtained in an observational study that enrolled patients with mild ischemic stroke symptoms (National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale [NIHSS] score of 0-5) present on arrival to hospital within 4.5 hours of onset, in a subset of 100 hospitals participating in the Get With The Guidelines-Stroke quality improvement program. The number of fluctuations, direction, and the overall improvement or worsening was recorded based on reports from the patient, family, or paramedics. Baseline NIHSS on arrival and at 72 hours (or discharge if before) and final diagnosis and stroke subtype were collected. Outcomes at 90 days included the modified Rankin Scale, Barthel Index, Stroke Impact Scale 16, and European Quality of Life. Prehospital fluctuations were examined in relation to hospital NIHSS change (admission to 72 hours or discharge) and 90-day outcomes. RESULTS: Among 1588 participants, prehospital fluctuations, consisting of improvement, worsening, or both were observed in 35.5%: 25.1% improved once, 5.3% worsened once, and 5.1% had more than 1 fluctuation. Those who improved were less likely and those who worsened were more likely to receive alteplase. Those who improved before hospital arrival had lower change in the hospital NIHSS than those who did not fluctuate. Better adjusted 90-day outcomes were noted in those with prehospital improvement compared to those without any fluctuations. CONCLUSIONS: Fluctuations in neurological symptoms and signs are common in the prehospital setting. Prehospital improvement was associated with better 90-day outcomes, controlling for admission NIHSS and alteplase treatment. REGISTRATION: URL: https://www.clinicaltrials.gov; Unique identifier: NCT02072681

Predictors of Outcomes in Patients With Mild Ischemic Stroke Symptoms: MaRISS.

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