Magnetic Resonance Imaging and Computed Tomography in Emergency Assessment of Patients with Suspected Acute Stroke: A Prospective Comparison

Background: Timely diagnosis has become important because the safety and efficacy of acute cerebral ischemia depend on rapid and accurate assessment and treatment within a few hours of the onset of symptoms.The overall incidence of stroke is about 2.4 per thousand people, with a small geographical difference. Studies have shown that the echo MRI gradient is as accurate as CT within 6 hours of the onset of symptoms in patients with acute stroke. Methodology: This study is a one-time prospective comparison of CT and MRI in acute stroke assessment. The study was conducted from April 2020 to September 2020 at the Hayatabad Medical Complex in Peshawar, with the ethical approval of the hospital ethical review committee. Regardless of the onset date, the severity of symptoms, or final clinical diagnosis, a series of patients suspected of further referral to a stroke staff at the hospital are eligible. Results: Results showed that out of 178 patients referred for clinical suspicion of stroke, acute stroke corresponds to almost two-thirds of the final clinical diagnosis. MRI found 92 out of 178 acute strokes and 29 out of 178 CT. According to study results, the MRI has a higher frequency for detecting any acute stroke (ischemic or hemorrhagic) compared with CT (p <0.0001). All four readers agreed that 143 patients with MRI and 103 patients with CT respectively, 143 patients (80%, 76-84%) had an acute stroke. Conclusion: MRI is better for detecting acute ischemia than CT and can detect both acute and chronic bleeding. This should therefore be the preferred test method for accurate diagnosis of patients with suspected acute stroke. Samples of patients cover a variety of diseases that may arise in an emergency with a suspected stroke so that the results can be applied immediately in the clinic.