Physicians in the hospital setting often utilize a more comprehensive stroke scale to evaluate patients. This is a 15-item scale that quantifies stroke deficit and is useful for specialists but impractical for pre-hospital.
The NIH Stroke Scale booklet is available for download by clicking here. This reliable and valid scale is used as a reference in most major studies involving stroke care and the use of thrombolytic therapies. There is a pediatric version available (PedNIHSS) which is based on modification of the adult scale. It is important to understand that strokes do occur in children and the incidence has been reported as high as 7.9/100,000 children per year. [32] | |
