Frailty links to lower thrombolysis use and male stroke deaths

In a retrospective cohort study of 59,346 adults hospitalized with ischemic stroke in Ontario, Canada, researchers examined how age and frailty relate to acute reperfusion therapy and survival. Frailty was measured via a hospital-based index, classifying 57.6% of patients with medium frailty and 38.9% with high frailty. Older patients across both sexes were less likely to receive thrombolysis or thrombectomy and faced higher 30-day mortality. High frailty was associated with lower thrombolysis use compared to low frailty, yielding adjusted risk ratios of 0.66 in females and 0.72 in males, but was not linked to thrombectomy rates. High frailty was also associated with increased 30-day mortality in males, with an adjusted risk ratio of 2.09, but not in females.