只有少數腦卒中發作的患者在3小時之內到達醫院，而這段時間對接受重組組織纖維蛋白溶酶原激活劑(tPA)治療而言是至關重要的，該藥物能夠溶解血栓并降低永久性致殘的可能。

在1項涉及密歇根15家醫院的研究中，研究人員研究了6個月內入院治療的每1例腦卒中患者。在2,097例腦卒中患者出現血凝塊，只有43例患者，或者是2%的患者，接受了溶栓藥物。在那些沒有接受治療的患者中，41%患者到達醫院的時候，距離最初癥狀出現的時間已經超過了3小時。另外38%的患者，何時出現癥狀則無從得知。這項研究發表在2006年2月的《神經病學》期刊之上。

Stroke Deadline Missed by Many
 
Only a small fraction of people who are undergoing a stroke arrive at a hospital within the necessary three hours needed to receive recombinant tissue plasminogen activator (tPA), which can dissolve the clot and reduce the chance of permanent disability.

In a study involving 15 hospitals in Michigan, researchers identified everyone who was admitted to the hospital with a stroke over a six-month period. Of the 2,097 people who had strokes involving blood clots, only 43 people, or 2%, received the clot-busting drug. Of those who did not receive treatment, 41% arrived at the hospital more than three hours after the first symptom started. For another 38%, there was no information available about when the symptoms started. The study was published in the February 14, 2006, issue of Neurology.