Procedures
Having identifi ed an eligible patient, the clinician
completed a randomisation form. The clinician entered
the patient’s baseline data via a web-based or a 24-h
telephone randomisation service. After the baseline data
had been entered and the computer program had
checked for completeness and consistency, the system
generated a group allocation—either routine care plus
thigh-length GCS (Tyco Healthcare [Covidien], MA,
USA) or routine care plus avoidance of GCS. We used a
minimisation program to achieve optimum balance
within centres for key prognostic factors: delay since
stroke onset (day 0 or 1 vs day ≥2); stroke severity with a
validated prognostic model;20 leg paresis (able or not to
lift both legs off the bed); and prescription of heparin,