Epidemiology of stroke patients in Tikur Anbessa Specialized Hospital: Emphasizing clinical characteristics of Hemorrhagic Stroke Patients

Background: Stroke is one of the leading causes of death and adult disability. Unlike the developed world, hemorrhagic stroke has been reported to be more prevalent in sub-Saharan Africa. Risk factors and determinants of stroke are not well identified in Ethiopia.Methods: A retrospective chart review of all stroke patients who presented from December 2010 to December 2014 was conducted. Demographic characteristics, risk factors and stroke types and their hospital outcome were reviewed, emphasizing on hemorrhagic stroke patients.Result: During the study period, 301 patients were seen for stroke, of which a total of 139(46.1%) were hemorrhagic stroke patients. From the hemorrhagic stroke patients, 88 (63.3%) of them were male and 51 patients (36.7%) were female. From those hemorrhagic stroke patients, 103 patients (74.1%) of them had hypertension. Majority, 65(63.1%), of hypertensive hemorrhagic stroke patients were not adherent to their antihypertensive medication. From hemorrhagic stroke patients with HTN, 28(27%) of them were diagnosed to have HTN after stroke already occurred. From the study participants, 58(19.2%) of the patients died in the hospital and 35 (60.3%) of them were hemorrhagic stroke.Conclusion: The proportion of hemorrhagic stroke is higher compared with other developed countries. Untreated hypertension may be the contributing factor. Early detection of hypertension and strict control, early health seeking, and good comprehensive stroke care will potentially decrease the mortality and morbidity of stroke.Key words: Stroke, Hemorrhagic, Hypertension, non-complianc

Prospective Assessment of Patients with Stroke in Tikur Anbessa Specialised Hospital, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Introduction: The burden of stroke is increasing in many low- and middle-income countries. In Ethiopia, stroke has become a major cause of morbidity, long-term disability, and mortality. Time from stroke onset to hospital presentation is a critical factor in acute stroke care. This study aimed to describe risk factors for stroke and clinical presentation of patients presenting to the emergency centre with stroke. Methods: We conducted a cross sectional study conducted from August 2015 to January 2016 in an urban tertiary care centre in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Descriptive statistics and multivariable logistic regression models were used to evaluate associations between stroke types and stroke risk factors, and delayed presentation and clinical indicators. P-values less than .05 were considered statistically significant. Results: A total of 104 patients were included. The mean age was 53years, and 56% were male. Only 30% of patients arrived using an ambulance service. The most common presenting symptoms were altered mental status (48%), hemiparesis (47%), facial palsy (45%), hemiplegia (29%), and aphasia (25%). Hypertension was the most common risk factor (49%), followed by cardiovascular disease (20.2%) and diabetes mellitus (11%). The majority of strokes were haemorrhagic in aetiology (56%). The median arrival time to the emergency centre was 24h after symptoms onset; only 15% presented within three hours. Patients with hypertension, or presented with loss of consciousness were significantly more likely to have haemorrhagic stroke (\u3c .001 and p=.01 respectively). The only risk factor robustly associated with ischaemic stroke was cardiac illness (odds ratio 3.99, p=.01). Discussion: Our study identified hypertension to be the most common risk factor for stroke. The predominant aetiology type in this cohort is haemorrhagic stroke. Lastly, the median arrival time to an emergency centre was 24h after symptom onset

Behcet’s Disease with Upper GI Bleeding

Introduction. Behcet’s disease is a multisystem disease. In sub-Saharan Africa, the prevalence of this disease is not known, with only one case report from Ethiopia. Case Presentation. We describe a case of a 29-year-old Ethiopian male who presented to the emergency room of Tikur Anbessa specialized hospital with 4 days history of back pain, recurrent history of oral and genital ulcers, right eye blindness, chronic cerebral vein thrombosis, gastrointestinal bleeding, aortic aneurysm with dissection, and positive pathergy test. He is retrospectively diagnosed with Behcet’s disease according to both the International Criteria for Behcet’s Disease (ICBD) and the International Study Group (ISG) consensus. Conclusion. Even if Behcet’s disease is rare in sub-Saharan Africa, it is important to know the clinical presentation for timely diagnosis and urgent management

Barriers to and facilitators of the development and utilization of context appropriate evidence based clinical algorithms to optimize clinical care and patient outcomes in the Tikur Anbessa emergency department: a multi-component qualitative study

Abstract Background Evidence-based clinical algorithms (EBCA) are knowledge tools to promote evidence use by codifying evidence into action plans to facilitate appropriate care. However, their impact on process and outcomes of care varies considerably across practice settings and providers, highlighting the need for tailoring of both these knowledge tools and their implementation strategies to target end users and the setting in which EBCAs are to be employed. Leadership at the Tikur Anbessa Specialized Hospital emergency department (TASH-ED) in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia identified a need for context-appropriate EBCAs to improve evidence uptake to mitigate care gaps in this high volume, high acuity setting. We aimed to identify barriers and facilitators to utilization of EBCAs in the TASH-ED, to identify priority targets for development of EBCAs tailored for the TASH-ED context and to understand the process of care in the TASH-ED to inform implementation planning. Methods We employed a multi-component qualitative design including: semi-structured interviews with TASH-ED clinical, administrative and support services staff, and Toronto EM physicians who had worked in the TASH-ED; direct observation of the process of care in TASH-ED; document review. Results Although most TASH-ED participants reported an awareness of EBCAs, they noted little or no experience using them, primarily due to the poor fit of many EBCAs to their practice setting. All participants felt that context-appropriate EBCAs were needed to ensure standardized and evidence-based care and improve patient outcomes for common ED presentations. Trauma, sepsis, acute cardiac conditions, hypertensive emergencies, and diabetic keto-acidosis were most commonly identified as priorities for EBCA development. Lack of medication, equipment and human resources were identified as the primary barriers to use of EBCAs in the TASH-ED. Support from leadership and engagement of stakeholders outside the ED where EBCAs were believed to be less well accepted were identified as essential facilitators to implementation of EBCAs in the TASH-ED. Conclusions This study found a perceived need for EBCAs tailored to the TASH-ED setting to support uptake of evidence-based care into routine practice for common clinical presentations. Barriers and facilitators provide information essential to development of both context-appropriate EBCAs and plans for their implementation in the TASH-ED

The burden on emergency centres to provide care for critically ill patients in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Introduction: Given the scarcity of critical care hospital beds in Africa, emergency centres (ECs) are increasingly charged with caring for critically ill patients for extended periods of time. The objective of this study was to improve the understanding of the nature and outcomes of critically ill patients with prolonged treatment times of more than six hours in two ECs in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Methods: This study was conducted over three months in two ECs of urban tertiary care hospitals in Addis Ababa. Structured questionnaires were completed by six emergency and critical care nurses. EC patients were included if they met the Society for Critical Care Medicine (SCCM) intensive care unit (ICU) admission criteria and stayed in the EC for more than 6 h. We collected initial demographic and clinical information, data about the patients’ clinical course in the EC, and data regarding the patients’ disposition. We used descriptive statistics for analysis. Results: A total of 291 patients, over the course of three months, had an EC stay that exceeded six hours. The median length of stay for these patients was 48 h (interquartile range: 25–72 h). The most common categories of illness were neurological disease in 87 patients (30%) and cardiovascular disease in 61 patients (21%). The most frequent aetiologies of critical illness were severe head trauma and severe sepsis with multi-organ failure (26 patients, 9% each). A total of 94 patients (32%) died in the EC, while 86 (30%) were discharged directly from the EC without hospital admission. Discussion: ECs in Addis Ababa face a heavy burden in caring for a large number of critically ill patients over a long period of time, with relatively high mortality rates. These findings should promote supporting emergency centres to strengthen and expand ICU capacity to provide appropriate critical care services. Keywords: Emergency medicine, Critical care, Overcrowding, Ethiopi

A survey of emergency medicine and orthopaedic physicians’ knowledge, attitude, and practice towards the use of peripheral nerve blocks

Introduction: Peripheral nerve blocks (also known as regional anaesthesia) are currently used by many anaesthesiologists and emergency physicians for perioperative and procedural pain management. Methods: This is a cross sectional descriptive study conducted to evaluate knowledge, attitudes, and current practice towards use of peripheral nerve blocks for lower extremity injuries at Black Lion Hospital, a tertiary trauma centre in Addis Ababa. Results: A standardised survey was conducted with 64 participants working in emergency medicine [30/64 (46.9%)] and orthopaedics [34/64 (53.1%)]. Twenty-three of 64 (35.9%) respondents had received formal training. Knowledge was acquired from didactic/workshop format for 15/23 (65.2%), followed by peer training 6/23 (39.1%). The majority, 62/64 (96.9%), believed that knowledge of general anatomy and nerve blocks are very important. Thirty-one of 64 (48%) of the respondents did not routinely perform peripheral nerve blocks. A majority, 27/31 (87.1%) stated they lacked the required skills. Ultrasound guidance of the femoral nerve 16/33 (48.5%) was the most commonly performed peripheral nerve block, followed by ankle block using anatomic landmarks 15/33 (45.5%). Almost all (15/16) ultrasound-guided nerve blocks were done by emergency medicine providers, while all anatomic land mark guided blocks were done by orthopaedic teams. A majority of the respondents (93.8%) (n = 60) were optimistic that their practice on peripheral nerve blocks would increase in future. A highly significant association was found between previous training on peripheral nerve blocks and the number of peripheral nerve blocks performed in a month; p value – 0.006. Discussion: This study indicates peripheral nerve blocks are likely underutilised due to lack of training. There was a positive attitude towards peripheral nerve blocks but gaps on knowledge and practice

Mixed methods process evaluation of pilot implementation of the African Federation for Emergency Medicine trauma data project protocol in Ethiopia

Introduction: The African Federation for Emergency Medicine Trauma Data Project (AFEM-TDP) has created a protocol for trauma data collection in resource-limited settings using a clinical chart with embedded standardized data points that facilitates a systematic approach to injured patients. We performed a process evaluation of the protocol’s implementation at Tikur Anbessa Specialized Hospital in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia to provide insights for adapting the protocol to our setting. Methods: During the pilot implementation period, the quality of collected data was assessed. Structured key informant interviews about participant experiences and perceptions of the protocol implementation were then conducted. Interviews were analysed using a SWOT model. Results: During pilot data collection, the overall capture rate was 21%. Variables collected with high frequency included demographics, vital signs and ED diagnosis, while mechanism of injury and ED disposition were often missed. Key informant interviews identified Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats to the protocol. Strengths included improved patient care, enhanced training for junior providers and facilitated data collection. Weaknesses included inadequate supervision and challenges relating to the physical size of the form, which resulted in missing data. Opportunities included retrospective research and quality improvement work. Threats included perceived lack of a local champion, poor buy-in from other hospital departments and need for ongoing financial support. Conclusion: A mixed methods process evaluation is an invaluable tool when implementing novel data collection protocols, especially in resource-limited settings. We determined early successes and challenges of the implementation of the AFEM-TDP protocol and generated strategies to adapt the protocol to better suit our setting. Lessons from this process evaluation may be informative for other researchers designing and implementing similar data collection protocols. Keywords: Trauma registry, Quality improvement, Epidemiology, Implementation research, Ethiopia, Afric

Effect of a tailored sepsis treatment protocol on patient outcomes in the Tikur Anbessa Specialized Hospital, Ethiopia: results of an interrupted time series analysis

Abstract Background Despite improvement, sepsis mortality rates remain high, with an estimated 11 million sepsis-related deaths globally in 2017 (Rudd et. al, Lancet 395:200-211, 2020). Low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) are estimated to account for 85% of global sepsis mortality; however, evidence for improved sepsis mortality in LMICs is lacking. We aimed to improve sepsis care and outcomes through development and evaluation of a sepsis treatment protocol tailored to the Tikur Anbessa Specialized Hospital Emergency Department, Ethiopia, context. Methods We employed a mixed methods design, including an interrupted times series study, pre-post knowledge testing, and process evaluation. The primary outcome was the proportion of patients receiving appropriate sepsis care (blood culture collection before antibiotics and initiation of appropriate antibiotics within 1 h of assessment). Secondary outcomes included time to antibiotic administration, 72-h sepsis mortality, and 90-day all-cause mortality. Due to poor documentation, we were unable to assess our primary outcome and time to antibiotic administration. We used segmented regression with outcomes as binomial proportions to assess the impact of the intervention on mortality. Pre-post knowledge test scores were analyzed using the Student’s t-test to compare group means for percentage of scenarios with correct diagnosis. Results A total of 113 and 300 patients were enrolled in the pre-implementation and post-implementation phases respectively. While age and gender were similar across the phases, a higher proportion (31 vs. 57%) of patients had malignancies in the post-implementation phase. We found a significant change in trend between the phases, with a trend for increasing odds of survival in the pre-implementation phase (OR 1.24, 95% CI 0.98–1.56), and a shift down, with odds of survival virtually flat (OR 0.95, 95% CI. 0.88–1.03) in the post-implementation phases for 72-h mortality, and trends for survival pre- and post-implementation are virtually flat for 90-day mortality. We found no significant difference in pre-post knowledge test scores, with interpretation limited by response rate. Implementation quality was negatively impacted by resource challenges. Conclusion We found no improvement in sepsis outcomes, with a trend for increasing odds of survival lost post-implementation and no significant change in knowledge pre- and post-implementation. Variable availability of resources was the principal barrier to implementation. Trial registration Open Science Framework osf.io/ju4ga . Registered June 28, 201