A recognition tool for transient ischaemic attack

Background: Scoring systems exist to assist rapid identification of acute stroke but not for the more challenging diagnosis of transient ischaemic attack (TIA). Aim: To develop a clinical scoring system to assist with diagnosis of TIA. Methods: We developed and validated a clinical scoring system for identification of TIA patients. Logistic regression analysis was employed. Results: Our development cohort comprised 3216 patients. The scoring system included nine clinically useful predictive variables. After adjustment to reflect the greater seriousness of missing true TIA patients (a 2:1 cost ratio), 97% of TIA and 24% of non-TIA patients were accurately identified. Our results were confirmed during prospective validation. Conclusions: This simple scoring system performs well and could be used to facilitate accurate detection of TIA.