Dr. Rao’s IIN publishes stroke outcomes on World Stroke Day

Dr. Rao’s Hospital – International Institute of Neurosciences in Guntur marked World Stroke Day by releasing procedure counts, patient outcomes and family guidance for the first hour of a stroke. The release highlights both endovascular and open brain surgery results, plus the urgency of getting to a stroke-capable hospital fast.

Why it matters: - Stroke remains a leading cause of death and long-term disability worldwide. - The first hours after symptoms start can determine whether a patient can receive clot-busting medicine, thrombectomy or surgery. - Dr. Rao’s Hospital – International Institute of Neurosciences (IIN) is using World Stroke Day to show real-world outcomes, including cases that did not go well. - The hospital says its stroke pathway brings advanced care closer to families in Tier-II Andhra Pradesh, where transfer times can cost brain tissue.

What happened: - Dr. Rao’s Hospital – IIN in Guntur, Andhra Pradesh, released its stroke-treatment results on World Stroke Day. - The release centers on Dr. Mohana Rao Patibandla, a fellowship-trained endovascular and cerebrovascular neurosurgeon and founder of the hospital. - Dr. Rao has performed more than 3,000 neurovascular procedures, including diagnostic cerebral angiograms. - Of those, 935 were therapeutic neurointerventions. - The hospital also reported more than 200 surgical aneurysm clippings and 126 BrainPath-assisted brain clot removals. - The World Stroke Organization’s 2026 campaign message is: “Every Minute Counts. #ActFAST.”

The details: - The 935 therapeutic neurointerventions included 296 aneurysm coilings, 221 carotid artery stenting procedures, 180 other neurointerventions, 107 stroke thrombectomies, 104 venous sinus stenting procedures and 26 flow diverter procedures. - The “other neurointerventions” category included AVM/AVF embolisation, intracranial angioplasty and stenting, and vasospasm treatment. - An aneurysm can be treated from inside the artery with coiling or flow diverters, or from outside with open surgery through clipping. - Dr. Rao’s IIN says its experience with both approaches allows treatment choice based on aneurysm shape, location and patient health. - Among 107 stroke thrombectomy patients, 47% were living independently at 90 days. - In the same thrombectomy group, 62% had a good outcome for activities of daily living. - About 14% of thrombectomy patients died. - The remaining thrombectomy patients did not improve meaningfully. - For comparison, a 2022 meta-analysis of 12 randomized trials reported 90-day mortality of 16.1% with thrombectomy and 19.2% without. - In the hospital’s 126 BrainPath cases, clot volume fell from a mean of 58.6 ml to 3.2 ml. - That BrainPath series showed a mean 94.5% clot removal. - Median Glasgow Coma Scale score improved from 10 to 14 in the BrainPath group. - In-hospital rebleeding was 0% in the BrainPath series. - At 90 days, 52% of BrainPath patients were living independently, defined as mRS 0–2. - Three-month mortality in the BrainPath series was 6%. - Mean blood loss during BrainPath surgery was about 98 ml. - Outcomes were better for lobar haemorrhage than for deep bleeds in the anterior basal ganglia with intraventricular haemorrhage. - Surgery within 8 hours was associated with better outcomes than later surgery. - Dr. Rao’s IIN says it has a 24/7 neuro catheterisation laboratory, a stroke-code system, neuronavigation, intraoperative CT, neuromonitoring, a neuro-ICU and rehabilitation services. - Patients travel to Guntur from across Andhra Pradesh, neighboring states and abroad. - Dr. Rao’s IIN also performs carotid artery stenting for narrowed neck arteries and venous sinus stenting when narrowed brain drainage veins are the cause of symptoms. - For ischaemic stroke, the hospital uses thrombolysis in the early hours and mechanical thrombectomy for eligible patients. - For haemorrhagic stroke, treatment options include coiling, flow diverters, clipping and BrainPath-assisted clot removal. - The release says BE FAST means Balance, Eyes, Face, Arm, Speech and Time, and instructs families to call emergency services in India at 112. - The release also advises families to note when symptoms started, avoid food, water, tablets and home remedies, and keep the person comfortable with the head slightly raised if awake. - The hospital says a rapid brain scan and blood-vessel scan guide treatment once the patient reaches the hospital. - Dr. Rao’s release identifies common stroke risk factors as high blood pressure, diabetes, smoking, high cholesterol, obesity, atrial fibrillation and narrowed neck arteries. - The release says most strokes are linked to controllable risk factors such as blood pressure, diabetes, smoking and cholesterol. - Dr. Mohana Rao Patibandla said, “Not every patient recovers, and we say so openly.” - Dr. Patibandla also said, “But speed changes the odds, and the right operation for the right patient changes them again.”

Between the lines: - The release is unusually transparent for a medical institution because it includes both strong outcomes and weaker ones. - That framing suggests the hospital is trying to build trust around high-risk stroke care, where results depend heavily on timing and patient selection. - The emphasis on both endovascular and open surgery also signals a broad treatment menu, which matters when one approach is not the right fit. - The comparison to trial data is useful, but the hospital’s single-centre results are not directly interchangeable with randomized studies.

What's next: - The hospital says families should treat stroke as an emergency and reach a stroke-capable hospital immediately. - Selected bleeding-stroke patients at Dr. Rao’s IIN will continue to receive BrainPath-assisted clot removal in an early window. - The release points to ongoing prevention efforts focused on blood pressure control, diabetes management, cholesterol control, smoking cessation, exercise and evaluation for irregular heartbeat. - More information is available in the World Stroke Organization’s campaign and on Dr. Rao’s stroke-treatment page.

The bottom line: - Dr. Rao’s IIN is pairing advanced stroke surgery with public outcome reporting, and the message is simple: get help fast, because minutes matter.