On the Undertreatment and Overtreatment of Strokes
In research I have had the pleasure of conducting with Darin Zahurenic, we are starting to find concerning data about the variability in how neurologists and neurosurgeons treat people who have strokes caused by bleeding in their brains – or what doctors call intracerebral hemorrhage. Darin recently presented some of this research at a medical conference, and the media have already begun to show interest in the work. Here’s one story:
Treatment plans offered by neurologists and neurosurgeons in hypothetical cases of intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) varied widely, a researcher said here, suggesting the condition may be both under- and overtreated.
In the case with the poorest apparent prognosis, about as many physicians in the study recommended full intensive care as those who proposed only palliative treatment, reported Darin Zahuranec, MD, of the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor.
Physician predictions of outcomes also varied, though not quite as much, he reported during a poster session at the American Neurological Association annual meeting. (Read more here)