Skip to content
  • About
  • Contact
  • Contribute
  • Book
  • Careers
  • Podcast
  • Recommended
  • Speaking
  • All
  • Physician
  • Practice
  • Policy
  • Finance
  • Conditions
  • .edu
  • Patient
  • Meds
  • Tech
  • Social
  • Video
    • All
    • Physician
    • Practice
    • Policy
    • Finance
    • Conditions
    • .edu
    • Patient
    • Meds
    • Tech
    • Social
    • Video
    • About
    • Contact
    • Contribute
    • Book
    • Careers
    • Podcast
    • Recommended
    • Speaking

How this neurologist used Twitter to help treat a stroke

Steven H. Rudolph, MD
Social media
August 7, 2015
Share
Tweet
Share

shutterstock_154181867

The most important factor in successful stroke treatment is time. When a stroke patient is encountered by EMS, or when they present to an emergency department, it is absolutely vital to determine the time “last known well” to make decisions about what treatments may be available and appropriate.

A 97-year-old woman arrived in our emergency department after suddenly becoming unable to speak, and rapidly developing right sided weakness, progressing to complete paralysis. She was brought in by EMS accompanied by her husband, also in his 90s. A CT scan was immediately performed, and did not demonstrate any bleeding in the brain. That meant that she had the type of stroke caused by a blood clot, cutting off circulation to the brain. In order to be able to treat her stroke, it was absolutely necessary to find out when her symptoms started. She was potentially eligible to receive the clot dissolving drug tPA, in this case it could only be administered within 3 hours of the time of onset of the stroke. And the treatment works better the sooner it is administered.

We tried to find out from the husband exactly when her symptoms started. At first it seemed that we would not be able to get this information from him. He told us he was not wearing a watch, and was not looking at the clock. It was time for some detective work. We asked him what he was doing at the time, and he told us he was watching a Yankees game. Then he looked at us and said “she fell off the sofa in the seventh inning.”

Now we needed to very rapidly find out when the game was in the seventh inning. Various ideas were offered, such as checking the online box score on sports websites. I thought someone must have been tweeting during the game. Fortunately, our hospital did not block search.twitter.com. We searched on “Yankees” and found a series of tweets that occurred throughout the game. We found one from the seventh inning. It was two hours earlier. The patient was immediately treated with tPA, and made a significant recovery prior to discharge to rehabilitation.

Twitter is not generally regarded as a medical tool. While this case demonstrates a dramatic use, many physicians find it useful to follow medical journals, societies, FDA, and many other medical resources.

One more tool in stroke treatment. Twitter.

Steven Rudolph is a neurologist who blogs at Thoughts on Technology and Medicine.

Image credit: PiXXart / Shutterstock.com

Prev

Doctors aren't allowed to cry. But maybe they should be.

August 7, 2015 Kevin 3
…
Next

Antibiotics for appendicitis: What does a surgeon think about this?

August 7, 2015 Kevin 4
…

Tagged as: Neurology, Twitter

Post navigation

< Previous Post
Doctors aren't allowed to cry. But maybe they should be.
Next Post >
Antibiotics for appendicitis: What does a surgeon think about this?

ADVERTISEMENT

More by Steven H. Rudolph, MD

  • a desk with keyboard and ipad with the kevinmd logo

    The survival of Medicare depends on providers and patients

    Steven H. Rudolph, MD
  • a desk with keyboard and ipad with the kevinmd logo

    Patients adjusting their medications and controlling blood pressure

    Steven H. Rudolph, MD
  • a desk with keyboard and ipad with the kevinmd logo

    Medicare needs to be more like a credit card

    Steven H. Rudolph, MD

Related Posts

  • Why social media may be causing real emotional harm

    Edwin Leap, MD
  • A physician’s addiction to social media

    Amanda Xi, MD
  • Are negative news cycles and social media injurious to our health?

    Rabia Jalal, MD
  • How I used social media to get promoted to professor

    David R. Stukus, MD
  • How social media leads to a loss of creativity

    Edwin Leap, MD
  • Sharing mental health issues on social media

    Tarena Lofton

More in Social media

  • First impressions happen online—not in your exam room

    Sara Meyer
  • What teenagers on TikTok are saying about skin care—and why that’s a problem

    Khushali Jhaveri, MD
  • How social media and telemedicine are transforming patient care

    Jalene Jacob, MD, MBA
  • How DrKoop.com rose and fell: the untold story behind the Surgeon General’s startup

    Nigel Cameron, PhD
  • How I escaped the toxic grip of social media

    Dr. Damane Zehra
  • Why doctors must fight health misinformation on social media

    Olapeju Simoyan, MD
  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • When language barriers become a medical emergency

      Monzur Morshed, MD and Kaysan Morshed | Physician
    • The dangerous racial bias in dermatology AI

      Alex Siauw | Tech
    • A surgeon’s view on RVUs and moral injury

      Rene Loyola, MD | Physician
    • Why what you do in midlife matters most

      Michael Pessman | Conditions
    • Why your health is a portfolio to manage

      Larry Kaskel, MD | Conditions
    • Protecting physicians when private equity buys in [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
  • Past 6 Months

    • Rethinking the JUPITER trial and statin safety

      Larry Kaskel, MD | Conditions
    • How one physician redesigned her practice to find joy in primary care again [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • When language barriers become a medical emergency

      Monzur Morshed, MD and Kaysan Morshed | Physician
    • The measure of a doctor, the misery of a patient

      Anonymous | Physician
    • A doctor’s struggle with burnout and boundaries

      Humeira Badsha, MD | Physician
    • The stoic cure for modern anxiety

      Osmund Agbo, MD | Physician
  • Recent Posts

    • Protecting physicians when private equity buys in [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • Why faith and academia must work together

      Adrian Reynolds, PhD | Education
    • Pancreatic cancer racial disparities

      Earl Stewart, Jr., MD | Conditions
    • What AI can never replace in medicine

      Jessica Wu, MD | Physician
    • Why the MAHA plan is the wrong cure

      Emily Doucette, MPH and Wayne Altman, MD | Policy
    • Why burnout prevention starts with leadership

      Kim Downey, PT & Shari Morin-Degel, LPC | Conditions

Subscribe to KevinMD and never miss a story!

Get free updates delivered free to your inbox.


Find jobs at
Careers by KevinMD.com

Search thousands of physician, PA, NP, and CRNA jobs now.

Learn more

View 1 Comments >

Founded in 2004 by Kevin Pho, MD, KevinMD.com is the web’s leading platform where physicians, advanced practitioners, nurses, medical students, and patients share their insight and tell their stories.

Social

  • Like on Facebook
  • Follow on Twitter
  • Connect on Linkedin
  • Subscribe on Youtube
  • Instagram

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • When language barriers become a medical emergency

      Monzur Morshed, MD and Kaysan Morshed | Physician
    • The dangerous racial bias in dermatology AI

      Alex Siauw | Tech
    • A surgeon’s view on RVUs and moral injury

      Rene Loyola, MD | Physician
    • Why what you do in midlife matters most

      Michael Pessman | Conditions
    • Why your health is a portfolio to manage

      Larry Kaskel, MD | Conditions
    • Protecting physicians when private equity buys in [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
  • Past 6 Months

    • Rethinking the JUPITER trial and statin safety

      Larry Kaskel, MD | Conditions
    • How one physician redesigned her practice to find joy in primary care again [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • When language barriers become a medical emergency

      Monzur Morshed, MD and Kaysan Morshed | Physician
    • The measure of a doctor, the misery of a patient

      Anonymous | Physician
    • A doctor’s struggle with burnout and boundaries

      Humeira Badsha, MD | Physician
    • The stoic cure for modern anxiety

      Osmund Agbo, MD | Physician
  • Recent Posts

    • Protecting physicians when private equity buys in [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • Why faith and academia must work together

      Adrian Reynolds, PhD | Education
    • Pancreatic cancer racial disparities

      Earl Stewart, Jr., MD | Conditions
    • What AI can never replace in medicine

      Jessica Wu, MD | Physician
    • Why the MAHA plan is the wrong cure

      Emily Doucette, MPH and Wayne Altman, MD | Policy
    • Why burnout prevention starts with leadership

      Kim Downey, PT & Shari Morin-Degel, LPC | Conditions

MedPage Today Professional

An Everyday Health Property Medpage Today
  • Terms of Use | Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
  • DMCA Policy
All Content © KevinMD, LLC
Site by Outthink Group

How this neurologist used Twitter to help treat a stroke
1 comments

Comments are moderated before they are published. Please read the comment policy.

Loading Comments...