Resuscitation
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In most patients with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA), cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) is initiated by first responders (non-transporting firefighters or police) or emergency medical service (EMS) personnel. Whether survival outcomes differ when CPR is initiated by first responders vs. EMS is unclear. ⋯ CPR initiated by first responders for OHCA is associated with higher overall survival rates and higher survival was largely mediated by earlier response times.
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To develop a simple scoring model that identifies individuals satisfying the termination of resuscitation (TOR) rule but having potential to achieve favourable neurological outcome following out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA). ⋯ A simple scoring model comprising age, first documented cardiac rhythm, and transport time effectively stratified the likelihood of achieving favourable neurological outcome in patients satisfying the BLS TOR rule.
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Improving rates of organ donation among patients with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest who do not survive is an opportunity to save countless lives. The objectives of this scientific statement were to do the following: define the opportunity for organ donation among patients with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest; identify challenges and opportunities associated with organ donation by patients with cardiac arrest; identify strategies, including a generic protocol for organ donation after cardiac arrest, to increase the rate and consistency of organ donation from this population; and provide rationale for including organ donation as a key clinical outcome for all future cardiac arrest clinical trials and registries. ⋯ All health systems should develop, implement, and evaluate protocols designed to optimise organ donation opportunities for patients who have an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest and failed attempts at resuscitation.
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We aimed to quantify the association of no-flow interval in out-of-hospital cardiac arrests (OHCA) with the odds of neurologically favorable survival and survival to hospital discharge/ 30th day. Our secondary aim was to explore futility thresholds to guide clinical decisions, such as prehospital termination of resuscitation. ⋯ We demonstrated that prolonged no-flow interval had a significant effect on lower odds of favorable neurological outcomes, with medical futility occurring when no-flow interval was >12 mins (>7.5 mins for witnessed arrest). Our study adds to the literature of the importance of early CPR and EMS response and provided a threshold beyond traditional 'down-times', which could aid clinical decisions in TOR or OHCA management.