Early prolonged ambulatory cardiac monitoring in stroke (EPACS): an open-label randomised controlled trial

Table 1 Baseline characteristics of the study participants

Characteristic	Patch-based monitoring (ACTIVE) (n = 43)	Short-duration Holter (CONTROL) (n = 47)	P value
Age, year	70.7 ± 12.6	70.0 ± 13.9	0.82
Sex, no. (%)
Male	26 (60.5)	29 (61.7)	1.00
Female	17 (39.5)	18 (38.3)
Race or ethnic group, no. (%)
Asian	1 (2.3)	2 (4.3)	0.80
Black	11 (25.6)	10 (21.3)
White	31 (72.1)	35 (74.5)
Recruitment site, no. (%)
King’s College Hospital	12 (27.9)	22 (46.8)	0.08
Princess Royal University Hospital	31 (72.1)	25 (53.2)
Index event, no. (%)
Stroke	35 (81.4)	43 (91.5)	0.22
TIA	8 (18.6)	4 (8.5)
Prior stroke or TIA, no. (%)	12 (27.9)	7 (14.9)	0.20
Score on NIH stroke scale (stroke patients)^a	2.3 ± 3.7	2.1 ± 2.6	0.90
Score on ABCD² (TIA patients), no.	4.1 ± 0.6	4.2 ± 0.8	0.87
Hypertension, no. (%)	26 (60.5)	30 (63.8)	0.83
Diabetes, no. (%)	10 (23.3)	10 (21.3)	1.00
CHADS₂VASc₂ score, no.^b	4.4 ± 1.2	4.3 ± 1.0	0.61
Ischaemic heart disease, no. (%)	8 (18.6)	5 (10.6)	0.37
Hypercholesterolaemia, no. (%)	17 (39.5)	17 (36.2)	0.83
Smoking status, no. (%)
Ex-smoker	12 (27.9)	5 (10.6)	0.27
Current smoker	6 (14)	10 (21.3)
Use of antiplatelet, no. (%)^c
None	30 (69.8)	33 (70.2)	0.26
Aspirin	5 (11.6)	10 (21.3)
Clopidogrel	6 (14.0)	4 (8.5)
Aspirin and Clopidogrel	2 (4.7)	0 (0)
No. of days from index event to randomisation	2.0 ± 1.2	1.9 ± 1.1	0.60

Plus–minus values are mean ± SD. P values were calculated with the use of Student’s t test, Wilcoxon Mann–Whitney Rank-Sum test or Fisher’s exact test, as appropriate. TIA denotes transient ischaemic attack
NIH National Institutes of Health, TIA transient ischaemic attack
^aScores on the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale range from 0 to 42, with higher scores indicating more severe neurologic deficits. The score was not reported for three patients in the patch-based monitoring (ACTIVE) group and four patients in the 24-h Holter monitoring group
^bScores on the CHADS₂VASc₂ risk assessment range from 0 to 6, with higher scores indicating a greater risk of stroke
^cAntiplatelet therapy before the index stroke or TIA

ISSN: 2047-783X