Speech disturbance plays critical role in stroke recognition during COVID‐19 pandemic

摘要

The novel coronavirus disease pandemic (COVID‐19) has had a profound impact on stroke and stroke care. We and others have reported that there was a significant drop in stroke admissions and the numbers of cases treated with thrombolysis and thrombectomy across the world. National data registry in China showed that there was a 40% drop in stroke admission throughout China during the height of the pandemic.1 In the United States, a 39% drop in stroke evaluations was reported.2 From our international survey done through World Stroke Organization, we found that stroke admissions dropped on average 40% across the world.3 One contributory factor could have been due to the missed opportunities to recognize stroke during the pandemic. Due to social distancing and facial masking, facial drooping, one of the common signs of stroke, could potentially be covered and not easy to be recognized from a distance. Wearing a mask might also have made recognition of mild dysarthria more difficult. With social distancing, arm weakness, another common signs of stroke, may not easily recognized either. Therefore, many mild stroke patients might have been missed, and some of them may have then gone on to have a major stroke.