Resuscitation
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The incidence of pulseless electrical activity (PEA) as a presenting rhythm during cardiac arrest is increasing. The current animal models of PEA arrest, post-countershock or total asphyxiation, unreliably generate PEA for a specific time period. Neither of these models predictably generate pseudo-PEA. The purpose of this study was to create an animal model of pseudo-PEA that will allow for a prolonged time period in this arrest state for future research. ⋯ Partial asphyxiation using a 16% oxygen/84% nitrogen mix is a reliable laboratory method to create a prolonged state of pseudo-PEA in a swine model. The mechanism generating pseudo-PEA is hypoxemia-induced systemic acidosis. This model will allow sufficient time in this low-flow cardiac state for future research to be conducted.
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Few published "track and trigger systems" used to identify sick adult patients incorporate patient age as a variable. We investigated the relationship between vital signs, patient age and in-hospital mortality and investigated the impact of patient age on the function as predictors of in-hospital mortality of the two most commonly used track and trigger systems. ⋯ Age has a significant impact on in-hospital mortality. Our data suggest that the inclusion of age as a component of these systems could be advantageous in improving their function.