Head-of-Bed Positioning in Large Artery Acute Ischemic Stroke

Positioning of the patient with hyperacute IS is an important, yet understudied aspect of care that could impact the course of treatment and ultimately clinical outcome. Positioning with the head of bed (HOB) at 0-degree has been shown in small studies to increase cerebral blood flow across arterial occlusion in hyperacute large artery IS, leading to clinical improvement in stroke symptoms. On the other hand, small studies have also documented clinical symptom worsening in IS patients when the HOB was elevated to 30-degree or higher.

A recent large cluster randomized trial (HeadPoST) attempted to determine the optimal head position in acute IS, but failed to enrol the patient cohort for which 0-degree head positioning may be beneficial. Findings from HeadPoST have been debated by the stroke neurologists due to some design flaws and enrolment of inappropriate patients to answer this question. In fact, HeadPoST has become a catalyst for conducting a high quality head positioning research in hyperacute large artery IS to definitively answer the question of how best to manage these highly vulnerable patients to ensure stability and prevent symptom worsening.

Mechanisms proposed for clinical improvement at 0-degree-HOB include favorable gravitational arterial flow conditions, recruitment of collateral vessels, and in the case of intravenous thrombolysis, improved clot-lytic interactions augmenting arterial recanalization. Collectively, these mechanisms may support the argument that 0-degree-HOB positioning should be among the first steps taken in large artery hyperacute IS patient management.

This efficacy study aims to determine if 0 degree-HOB positioning in hyperacute IS prevents neurological symptom worsening in large artery occlusion patients. The study will achieve these goals through use of a novel protocol enabling enrolment of consecutive large artery occlusion patients while maintaining compliance with management specified by the guidelines.

This phase III study will utilize a prospective randomized outcome-blinded evaluation (PROBE) approach enrolling consecutive hyperacute large artery IS patients to determine if use of 0-degreeHOB positioning is associated with greater clinical stability.

Suspected acute IS patients admitted to the study center(s) will undergo guideline-supported standard of care stroke team emergency response procedures, including assessment/ stabilization of airway, breathing, circulation with immediate transport for imaging. Continuous portable ECG monitoring and nasal canula oxygen will be established in CT (or MRI), and IV access will be obtained with STAT blood draw; point of care testing will be conducted immediately before STAT non-contrast CT (or MRI) with CTA (or MRA). The NIHSS will then be scored by the stroke team, followed by standard of care placement of a continuous pulse oximetry sensor, and completion of a rapid/detailed history/physical exam. Patients eligible for treatment with IV-tPA will have drug administered, and standard of care admission upright chest x-ray (CXR) will then be performed. Subjects meeting inclusions without exclusions will then be consented, randomized, and placed in the assigned HOB position, signaling the beginning of the monitoring phase of the intervention.

Patients will be transferred to the catheterization lab for mechanical thrombectomy (MT) once the team is ready for the procedure. Thrombectomy requires transfer from the ED to catheterization lab, with 0-degree-HOB positioning commencing immediately prior to groin puncture constituting the end of the head positioning phase of the protocol. Thrombectomy patients are extremely likely to benefit from 0-degree-HOB positioning because the procedure is only performed in patients without evidence of completed infarction. This novel protocol will capture serial NIHSS over the period before thrombectomy begins, allowing us to better understand how to maintain stability in this high risk vulnerable population.

Enrolled patients will be randomized to either 0-degree-HOB or 30-degree (or more) HOB positioning, and will undergo serial NIHSS assessments every 15mins +/- 5 mins while awaiting start of the thrombectomy. The patients will also undergo 24-hour ± 6hrs, 72hrs ± 12hrs discharge/7day, and 90-day +/- 14 days outcome monitoring, but these will be collected for exploratory purposes only. The NIHSS and mRS will be performed by credentialed members of the team. In addition to the chest X-Ray, blood will be drawn after obtaining the consent for HSCRP and Procalcitonin levels, primarily to substantiate the diagnosis of pre-hospital arrival chest infection, if any.

To assure balance in the treatment group throughout the course of enrolment, the investigators will use block randomization with a block size of 4 and an allocation ratio of 1:1. This scheme only shows the random assignment for a single given participant. Future assignments cannot be predicted by study personnel, and this effectively mitigates the risk for selection bias.