This demonstrator application is an implementation of part of the UK Royal College of Physicians’ National Guidleline for stroke (2008). Its focus is on secondary prevention of repeat stroke or cerebrovascular events. The system is designed to demonstrate how decision support technology may be able to assist in the management of stroke patients.
The introduction to chapter 5 of the guideline document gives the background to the application:
“This chapter covers secondary prevention. From the moment a person has an acute cerebrovascular event (of any sort), that person is at an increased risk of further events. The risk is substantial, being between 30% and 43% for recurrent stroke over the next five years (Mant et al 2004); there are additional risks of about the same magnitude for other vascularevents (eg myocardial infarction). There are few exceptions; patients who have stroke secondary to trauma are one obvious exception.
“The risk of further stroke is highest early after stroke or TIA and may be as high as 20% within the first month and 10% within the first week. Appropriate secondary prevention should therefore be commenced as soon as possible, usually in the acute phase provided it is safe to do so. However, it is also vital that attention to secondary prevention should be continued throughout the recovery and rehabilitation phase and for the rest of the patient’s life.”
The demonstrator application covers patient lifestyle, arterial thrombosis, blood pressure, lipid-lowering therapy, carotid stenosis, oral contraception and hormone replacement therapy. It was designed only to demonstrate how decision support technology may be able to assist in the management of stroke patients but is not intended for practical use and should not be used for any clinical purpose
To run the demonstrator
After clicking “Start Demo” above, click “confirm” when you arrive at the demonstration page, complete general clinical data forms and then go to the decision support tab to request assistance with specific decisions.