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Stroke & neuro
Two-thirds of stroke patients delay seeking care
Incidence of prehospital delay in people with ischemic stroke: a meta-analysis
Cerebrovascular Diseases · 2026-09-29 · Added 3 October 2026
Meta-analysis of 27 studies and 266,336 ischaemic stroke patients across 14 countries found 67.7% experienced prehospital delay before seeking care, with stroke knowledge and symptom recognition the key modifiable drivers.
- Study type
- Systematic review
- Design
- Systematic review and meta-analysis
- Participants
- 27 studies, 266,336 patients across 14 countries
- Main finding
- Pooled prehospital delay incidence 67.7% (95% CI 59.2–75.6%); 65.0% at the 2-hour cut-off and 77.2% at 3 hours
- Caveat
- Low-certainty evidence dominated by Asian studies with heterogeneous definitions of delay
- Bottom line
- Context only
Why it matters in Australia (High relevance). Onset-to-call delay is exactly the piece of the stroke chain Australian community education campaigns target, and this shows that work is far from finished.
Learning goal
Recognise the patient and community factors that contribute to prehospital delay in ischaemic stroke presentation.
More
- Topic: Stroke & neuro
- Daily scan: 3 October 2026
- Podcast: Paramedic Papers Daily, 3 October 2026
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