Scand J Trauma Resus
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Scand J Trauma Resus · Apr 2018
Observational StudyChange in the profile of traumatic spinal cord injury over 15 years in Spain.
Traumatic spinal cord injury remains a serious public health and social problem. Although incidence rates are decreasing in our environment, it is a high cost condition that is associated with great disability. The objective of this study was to describe the epidemiological and demographic characteristics of traumatic spinal cord injury and to analyse its epidemiological changes. ⋯ The rise in the number of falls among the older population, as well as the reduction in traffic accidents, decreased the incidence of traumatic spinal cord injury in our environment. This change in the profile of new traumatic spinal cord injuries led us to reformulate the functional objectives planned for these patients upon admission to specialized units, to plan destination-upon-discharge in advance and to promote campaigns to prevent spinal cord injury in older adults.
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Scand J Trauma Resus · Apr 2018
Observational StudyPrehospital triage of patients diagnosed with perforated peptic ulcer or peptic ulcer bleeding: an observational study of patients calling 1-1-2.
Triage systems are used in emergency medical services to systematically prioritize prehospital resources according to individual patient conditions. Previous studies have shown cases of preventable deaths in emergency medical services even when triage systems are used, indicating a potential undertriage among some conditions. The aim of this study was to investigate the triage level among patients diagnosed with perforated peptic ulcer (PPU) or peptic ulcer bleeding (PUB). ⋯ Among patients calling 1-1-2, fewer patients diagnosed with PPU/PUB received ambulance transportation than patients diagnosed with FHQ diagnoses, despite a high mortality among patients diagnosed with PPU/PUB.
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Scand J Trauma Resus · Apr 2018
ReviewAdvanced airway management in hoist and longline operations in mountain HEMS - considerations in austere environments: a narrative review This review is endorsed by the International Commission for Mountain Emergency Medicine (ICAR MEDCOM).
Providing sufficient oxygenation and ventilation is of paramount importance for the survival of emergency patients. Therefore, advanced airway management is one of the core tasks for every rescue team. Endotracheal intubation is the gold standard to secure the airway in the prehospital setting. This review aims to highlight special considerations for advanced airway management preceding human external cargo (HEC) evacuations. ⋯ Advanced airway management prior to HEC operation is rarely performed. If intubation before helicopter hoist operations (HHO) and human cargo sling (HCS) extraction is considered by the rescue team, a risk/benefit analysis should be performed and a clear standard operating procedure (SOP) should be defined. Continuous and rigorous training including the whole crew is required. An international registry on airway management during HEC extraction would be desirable.
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Scand J Trauma Resus · Apr 2018
Multicenter StudyDecreased risk adjusted 30-day mortality for hospital admitted injuries: a multi-centre longitudinal study.
The interpretation of changes in injury-related mortality over time requires an understanding of changes in the incidence of the various types of injury, and adjustment for their severity. Our aim was to investigate changes over time in incidence of hospital admission for injuries caused by falls, traffic incidents, or assaults, and to assess the risk-adjusted short-term mortality for these patients. ⋯ The decrease in risk-adjusted mortality may suggest changes over time in pre- and/or in-hospital care. A non-significantdecrease in risk-adjusted mortality was registered for falls, which may indicate that low-energy trauma has not benefited for the increased survivability as much as high-energy trauma, ie traffic- and assault related injuries.