The American journal of emergency medicine
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The helicopter transport of acute cardiac patients has become increasingly common, although no study has examined solely the effect of such transport on outcome in this subset of patients. A combined air and ground critical care transport service provided the opportunity for a direct comparison of patients with acute cardiac conditions (myocardial infarction or unstable angina) transported either by our helicopter or by a specially equipped critical care ground vehicle. Both air and ground components were similarly equipped in terms of personnel and medical equipment. ⋯ Serious untoward events, defined as arrhythmias, chest pain, hypotension, bradycardia, seizures, and cardiac arrest, occurred in 41% of air transports and 7.5% of ground transports (P less than .002). The overall incidence of untoward events was also significantly greater with air transports (25/51, or 49%) than with the ground vehicle (4/27, or 15%; P less than .005). The reasons for these differences are unknown.
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Fourteen patients with either acute myocardial infarction or unstable angina pectoris were transported by helicopter air ambulance to North Carolina Baptist Hospital during a 1-month period. Six patients had preflight and inflight plasma epinephrine and norepinephrine levels determined. All 14 patients were monitored for ventricular arrhythmias. ⋯ No patient had a monitored ventricular arrhythmia. These findings suggest that helicopter transport of cardiac patients may be associated with significant patient stress, as reflected by high inflight catecholamine levels. Further study with a larger population of patients is needed to determine whether or not an increased incidence of inflight ventricular arrhythmias is associated with these catecholamine changes.
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Prehospital patient management decisions are complex because the traumatized patient population is heterogeneous with respect to demographics, mechanism of injury, physiological response to injury, and time from injury to medical care. One hundred and nine blunt trauma patient evaluations by paramedics in a county-wide semirural emergency medical services (EMS) system were analyzed to determine paramedic time on the scene and the factors that might influence onscene time. Onscene time linearly correlated with a prolonged transport time. ⋯ However, patient groups with either a low TS or a low GCS score showed no significant improvement in TS with increasing onscene time. Without a strict management algorithm, paramedics use a variety of cues to guide their actions during the onscene management of blunt trauma. Future studies should address the impact of strict management algorithms on onscene time and ultimate patient outcome.
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The clinical management of 12 patients with major intrathoracic tracheobronchial rupture (complete, 3; incomplete, 9) due to blunt trauma has been reviewed and compared with that of two groups of patients with chest injuries not involving the tracheobronchial tree, 17 patients with multiple rib fractures and 17 with chest injuries requiring thoracotomy for control of pneumothorax and hemothorax. The effect of injury on ventilatory function was significantly greater in the patients with tracheobronchial injury in whom an elevated PCO2 at the time of admission was associated with a poor prognosis. Conventional ventilatory management with endotracheal intubation and positive pressure ventilation causing increased air leakage produced further deterioration of pulmonary function in four of the patients with tracheobronchial disruption. The use of a double-lumen endobronchial tube in two patients with tracheobronchial rupture facilitated ventilatory support and subsequent operative management.
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A case of cardiac arrest following hypothermia due to cold-water immersion is presented. Following rescue and initiation of cardiopulmonary resuscitation, the patient was transported by helicopter to a facility where rewarming using cardiopulmonary bypass was possible. Initial rectal temperature in the emergency department was 28 degrees C. ⋯ Temperature at the time of cardioversion was 30 degrees C (esophageal). Despite extended cardiac arrest and profound metabolic acidosis (pH = 6.41 at 37 degrees C), he recovered uneventfully and is neurologically normal. A protocol for the management of a patient with hypothermic cardiac arrest is included.