Answer: For patients with ischemic stroke who meet the eligibility criteria fibrinolytic therapy is the first-line treatment. Administration of IV recombinant tissue plasminogen activator within 3 hours of the onset of signs and symptoms is optimal (with a goal “door-to-needle” time of less than 1 hour).
A patient with an ischemic stroke arrives at the emergency department at 2 a.m. The patient’s symptoms started about 12:30 a.m. After completing the necessary assessments the healthcare team diagnoses an …