The Allegheny General Hospital (AGH) Comprehensive Stroke Center was founded in 1988 and is a designated Primary Stroke Center certified by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO).

The AGH Comprehensive Stroke Center provides both inpatient and consultative care for stroke patients throughout Western Pennsylvania and is in the lead position to advance stroke care throughout the 6 hospitals (1800 beds) of the West Penn Allegheny Health System. Acute stroke care is provided by stroke neurologists (24 hour service) who treat eligible acute stroke patients with intravenous tissue plasminogen activator (t-PA) and select patients for interventional stroke therapy. The AGH Stroke Center is a highly coordinated, multidisiplinary team of board certified neurologists, neurosurgeons, neuro-interventionalists with subspecialty expertise in cerebrovascular disease and provide comprehensive evaluation, treatment, prevention, and rehabilitative services for ischemic and hemorrhagic cerebrovascular disorders.

The AGH Stroke Service is comprised of:

• 3 stroke neurologists
• 2 interventional neuroradiologists
• 2 cerebrovascular surgeons
• 1 neurointensivist

What cerebrovascular conditions do we treat?

• Ischemic cerebral infarction in adults
• Transient ischemic attacks
• Extracranial or intracranial large-vessel occlusive disease
• Carotid stenosis
• Small-vessel related stroke
• Cardioembolic stroke
• Intracerebral hemorrhage, brain aneurysm, and arteriovenous hemorrhage (link to that section)
• Aortic arch atherosclerosis
• Vertebral or carotid dissection
• Central nervous system vasculitis
• Hematologic diseases (hypercoagulable disorders)

Total Inpatient Neurovascular Cases at AGH in 2005:

• 480 cases of ischemic stroke
• 220 cases of transient ischemic attack
• 300 cases of intracerebral hemorrhage

LifeFlight and Emergency Department:

LifeFlight is the aeromedical transportation system based at AGH and provides rapid transfer of stroke patients to AGH for acute stroke care. LifeFlight provides 2361 annual flights [2005] of which 834 flights had a primary neurologic diagnosis. The JCAHO executive summary states that AGH has "excellent integration with EMS [paramedic] services" and that the "emergency department evaluation of acute stroke patients has been carefully evaluated to assess barriers to rapid stroke interventions. This has resulted in systems that support greater than 70% compliance to thrombolytic therapy within 60 minutes of patient arrival." Earlier administration of intravenous tPA is associated with a higher probability of a good outcome in acute ischemic stroke.

Neuroimaging capabilities (24 hour services) at the AGH main campus include:

• 3 MRI scanners (1.5 Tesla) with diffusion and perfusion weighted imaging capability
• 4 CT Scanners (CT angiography and perfusion imaging
• Digital subtraction cerebral angiography
• Transcranial Doppler and carotid ultrasound

Neuroscience Units at the AGH Main Campus include:

• 23 bed Neurointensive Care Unit
• 42 bed Neuroscience Unit
• 36 bed telemetry monitored unit
• 8 bed Stroke Unit — stroke specific telemetry monitored unit which will be operational by November 2006

Stroke Clinic:

Patients with a broad range of neurovascular disorders are evaluated in this dedicated outpatient subspecialty clinic. Patients undergo outpatient diagnostic evaluations and atherosclerotic risk factor management including hypertension, hyperlipidemia, and diabetes. Diagnosis and treatment is also provided for vascular dementia, spasticity, and stroke related depression. The stroke clinic also provides continuity of care for stroke patients discharged from AGH.

Extensive Carotid revascularization experience at AGH includes:

• 155 carotid endarterectomies (CEA) performed by vascular surgery (2005)
• 23 carotid stents (CAS) performed by vascular surgery (2005)
• 158 carotid stents (CAS) performed by cardiology (2005)

Transfers/Referrals 412-359-8066 or (1-888-660-4884):

With one phone call to a transfer specialist at Allegheny General Hospital, all necessary arrangements can be made to arrange requested interhospital transfers. If necessary, we can transport patients to our facility using ambulance or helicopter service. This service is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.