European journal of emergency medicine : official journal of the European Society for Emergency Medicine
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Meta Analysis
Dispatching citizens as first responders to out-of-hospital cardiac arrests: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
Mobile phone technologies to alert citizen first responders to out-of-hospital cardiac arrests (OHCAs) were implemented in numerous countries. This systematic review and meta-analysis aim to investigate whether activating citizen first responders increases bystanders' interventions and improves outcomes. We searched PubMed, EMBASE, and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials from inception to 24 November 2021, for studies comparing citizen first responders' activation versus standard emergency response in the case of OHCA. ⋯ After screening, we included 10 studies for a total of 23 351 patients. OHCAs for which citizen first responders were activated had higher rates of survival at hospital discharge or 30 days compared with standard emergency response [nine studies; 903/9978 (9.1%) vs. 1104/13 247 (8.3%); odds ratio (OR), 1.45; 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.21-1.74; P < 0.001], return of spontaneous circulation [nine studies; 2575/9169 (28%) vs. 3445/12 607 (27%); OR, 1.40; 95% CI, 1.07-1.81; P = 0.01], bystander-initiated CPR [eight studies; 5876/9074 (65%) vs. 6384/11 970 (53%); OR, 1.75; 95% CI, 1.43-2.15; P < 0.001], and AED use [eight studies; 654/9132 (7.2%) vs. 624/14 848 (4.2%); OR, 1.82; 95% CI, 1.31-2.53; P < 0.001], but similar rates of neurological intact discharge [three studies; 316/2685 (12%) vs. 276/2972 (9.3%); OR, 1.37; 95% CI, 0.81-2.33; P = 0.24]. Alerting citizen first responders to OHCA patients is associated with higher rates of bystander-initiated CPR, use of AED before ambulance arrival, and survival at hospital discharge or 30 days.
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Meta Analysis
The performance of HEAR score for identification of low-risk chest pain: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
Chest pain is one of the most common presentations to the emergency department (ED) and HEART score (history, ECG, age, risk factors, and cardiac troponin) is recommended for risk stratification. It has been proposed that the sum of four items with no troponin (HEAR score) below 2 can be used safely to lower testing and reduce length of stay. To assess the performance of the HEAR score in hospital and prehospital settings, we performed a systematic review and meta-analysis. ⋯ This study showed that in the ED, the HEAR score<2 can be used for an early discharge strategy. Currently, this score cannot be recommended in prehospital setting. Prospero (CRD42021273710).
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Marked differences have been described between women and men in disease prevalence, clinical presentation, response to treatment and outcomes. However, such data are scarce in the acutely ill. An awareness of differences related to biological sex is essential for the success of clinical care and outcomes in patients presenting with acute dyspnea, the most frequent cause of emergency department (ED) admission. ⋯ Women have better 1-year survival than men after the initial ED presentation for acute dyspnea. Understanding the biological sex-related differences should lead toward precision medicine, and improve clinical decision-making to promote gender equality in health.
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Postcardiac arrest shock (PCAS) is defined by hemodynamic instability occurring in the first hours after cardiac arrest (CA) and is a major cause of mortality among patients hospitalized after CA. It includes vasoplegia and myocardial dysfunction. ⋯ However, there are many unknowns regarding its definition, its prognosis value and its management. In this review dedicated to emergency physicians, we choose to address tips and pitfalls they should know regarding this prevalent syndrome.
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Observational Study
Accuracy of Emergency Severity Index in older adults.
Emergency Severity Index is a five-level triage tool in the emergency department that predicts the need for emergency department resources and the degree of emergency. However, it is unknown whether this is valid in patients aged greater than or equal to 65 years. ⋯ Emergency Severity Index performed well in predicting high dependency unit/ICU admission rates for both 18-64 years and greater than or equal to 65-year-old patients. It predicted the 3-day mortality for patients aged greater than or equal to 65 years with high accuracy. It was inaccurate in predicting 30-day mortality and hospital admission for both age groups.