• Owen Scheirer, Andrew Leach, Stuart Netherton, Prosanta Mondal, Tim Hillier, Gabe Lafond, Tania LaFontaine, and Philip J Davis.
• Department of Emergency Medicine, Royal University Hospital, University of Saskatchewan, 103 Hospital Drive, Saskatoon, SK, S7N 0W8, Canada.
• CJEM. 2021 Jan 1; 23 (1): 75-79.

IntroductionOne in nine (11.7%) people in Saskatchewan identify as First Nations. It is known that First Nations people have a higher burden of cardiovascular disease, but not whether outcomes of out of hospital cardiac arrest are different.Methods/MethodologyWe reviewed pre-hospital and inpatient records of patients with out of hospital cardiac arrest between January 1st, 2015 and December 31st, 2017. The population consisted of patients aged 18 years or older with out of hospital cardiac arrest of presumed cardiac origin occurring in the catchment area of Saskatoon's emergency medical services (EMS). Variables of interest included age, gender, First Nations status, EMS response times, bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), and shockable rhythm. Outcomes of interest included return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC), survival to hospital admission, and survival to hospital discharge.ResultsIn all, 372 patients sustained out of hospital cardiac arrest, of which 27 were status First Nations. There were no differences between First Nations and non-First Nations patients in terms of shockable rhythms (24% vs 26%; p = 0.80), ROSC (42% vs 41%; p = 0.87), survival to hospital admission (27% vs 33%; p = 0.53), and survival to hospital discharge (15% vs 12%; p = 0.54). First Nations patients with out of hospital cardiac arrest were significantly younger (mean age 46 vs. 65 years; p < 0.0001) and had shorter EMS response times (median times 5.3 vs. 6.2 min; p = 0.01) when compared to non-First Nations patients.ConclusionsIn Saskatoon, First Nations patients with out of hospital cardiac arrest appear to have similar survival rates when compared with non-First Nations patients. However, First Nations patients sustaining out of hospital cardiac arrest were significantly younger than their non-First Nations counterparts. This highlights a significant public health issue.

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