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Stroke triage tools: cost-effective, hard to sustain

Health Economic & Implementation Determinants of Prehospital Stroke Triage Tools: A Systematic Review
Journal of Evaluation in Clinical Practice · 2026-10 · Added 6 October 2026

Systematic review of prehospital stroke triage tools (mobile stroke units, telemedicine, biomarkers, AI) found most reports of cost-effectiveness positive, but sustained implementation is limited by complexity, workflow fit and costs.

Study type

Systematic review

Design

Systematic review of health economic and implementation studies

Participants

31 studies (13 with health economic outcomes, 18 with implementation determinants)

Main finding

Of 6,491 screened studies, 31 were included (14 mobile stroke units, 13 telemedicine); positive cost-effectiveness was reported in 11 studies, but evidence on sustained implementation was limited and barriers included innovation complexity, role delineation, workflow compatibility, IT infrastructure and costs

Caveat

Narrative synthesis of heterogeneous study designs; only 13 of 31 studies reported health economic outcomes

Bottom line

Context only

Learning goal

Understand the system factors that shape sustainable and cost-effective prehospital stroke triage.

More

• Topic: Stroke & neuro
• Daily scan: 6 October 2026
• Podcast: Paramedic Papers Daily, 6 October 2026

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