NUR133 - Using the NIH Stroke Scale

Course overview

Stroke is the third leading cause of death in the United States and causes more serious long-term disabilities than any other disease. Forty-five percent of all Medicare dollars in the US are spent on rehabilitation of patients with stroke. Stroke obviously represents a serious physical and economic burden to the patient, caregiver, and society as a whole. Having information available about the prognosis of stroke survivors assists patients, caregivers, and rehabilitation professionals in preparing for these burdens guiding best practices and treatments. Treatment of stroke as quickly as possible has proven to result in improved outcomes for patients. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) have endorsed a scale that is widely used to predict the outcomes of stroke patients. This scale is a quantitative measure of stroke-related neurologic deficit that has proven intra- and inter-relater reliability and has predictive validity for long-term stroke outcome. It includes items to assess level of consciousness gaze, visual fields, facial palsy, motor strength, ataxia, sensation, language, dysarthria and extinction/inattention.