Prehospital emergency care : official journal of the National Association of EMS Physicians and the National Association of State EMS Directors
-
Observational Study
Prehospital Echocardiography During Resuscitation Impacts Treatment in a Physician-Staffed Helicopter Emergency Medical Service: an Observational Study.
Patients in cardiac arrest must receive algorithm-based management such as basic life support and advanced (cardiac) life support. International guidelines dictate diagnosing and treating any factor that may have caused the arrest or may be complicating the resuscitation. Ultrasound may be of potential value in this process and can be used in a prehospital setting. The objective is to evaluate the use of prehospital ultrasound during traumatic and non-traumatic CPR and determine its impact on prehospital treatment decisions in a Dutch helicopter emergency medical service (HEMS). ⋯ Prehospital echocardiography has an impact on patient treatment and may be a useful tool to support decision-making during CPR in a Dutch HEMS.
-
Timely administration of epinephrine is critical in the treatment of anaphylaxis. This study sought to determine the frequency of administration of epinephrine by EMS providers caring for pediatric patients in the prehospital setting. ⋯ There are missed opportunities for prehospital administration of epinephrine in pediatric patients with anaphylaxis. Very young children (age < 10) had increased odds for not receiving epinephrine.
-
As the first point of contact for patients activating emergency medical services (EMS), emergency dispatchers have the earliest opportunity to recognize stroke. We sought to quantify dispatcher stroke recognition and its relationships with EMS stroke recognition and response speed. ⋯ Emergency dispatcher stroke recognition is associated with higher rates of on-scene stroke scale performance and EMS ischemic stroke recognition but not with reduced transport times, door-to-CT times, or t-PA treatment.