Background/Aim: We aimed to estimate the health and economic benefits of increasing the identification of ischaemic stroke among Australian women to be the same as that observed
in men.
Methods: We used a Markov model to compare the health and economic outcomes of identifying ischaemic stroke among women with the same level of accuracy received by men,
versus the status quo. We assumed that cases identified as ischaemic stroke received treatment with intravenous thrombolysis, while cases not identified as stroke received usual
care. Our model cohort included 5,513 women under 70 years of age from New South Wales in Australia, based on analysis of linked data. Model parameters were populated using
clinical data and published literature. Incremental quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs) and costs are reported from a societal and health system perspective over a lifetime horizon.
Results: Compared to the status quo, when stroke was identified among 5,513 women with the same level of accuracy as men, they gained 0.32 QALYs and cost savings per patient
($16,066 from a societal perspective; $6,074 from a health system perspective). Based on the current rate of intravenous thrombolysis provision (10%), this equates to 198 QALYs gained,
and cost savings of $10 million (societal perspective) at the national level for 2020-21.
Conclusions: Increasing the identification of ischaemic stroke among Australian women would deliver substantial health gains and cost savings to Australian
women, benefiting society as a whole. This study highlights a strong case for greater investment in emergency medical services to address barriers to timely
and accurate identification of stroke, particularly in women.