Socioeconomic Status and Survival from Out-of-hospital Cardiac Arrest

Background: Socioeconomic status (SES) has been linked to heart disease, but its influence on outcome from out‐of‐hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) is not well understood. Objectives: The authors hypothesized that higher levels of SES would be associated with better survival, potentially through demographic, circumstance, or care factors. Methods: A cohort investigation of OHCA due to heart disease treated by emergency medical services between January 1, 1999, and December 31, 2003, was conducted in the study county. Socioeconomic status was assessed using two different measures: an individual‐level measure, tax‐assessed property value per unit, and a geography‐based measure, median household income from the 2000 Census. The authors used logistic regression to evaluate the association between survival to hospital discharge and quartile of SES. Models systematically adjusted for demographic, circumstance, and care factors that could potentially confound the association. Results: Socioeconomic status as measured by value per unit was associated with survival in unadjusted models (odds ratio [OR] = 1.21; 95% confidence interval [95% CI] = 1.05 to 1.36, for each successive increase in value‐per‐unit quartile). Adjustment for demographic, circumstance, and care factors altered the association only slightly (fully adjusted OR = 1.23; 95% CI = 1.08 to 1.39). In contrast, SES as measured by median household income was not associated with survival. The study could not investigate all potentially explanatory factors. The findings may not be generalizable to persons or communities that differ from the current investigation. Conclusions: An individual‐level, but not an area‐level, measure of SES predicted survival following OHCA independent of demographic, circumstance, or care factors. Future research should continue to investigate mechanisms through which SES is associated with OHCA survival.     

Survival rates in out-of-hospital cardiac arrest patients transported without prehospital return of spontaneous circulation: An observational cohort study

Background

Some Emergency Medical Services currently use just one component of the Universal Termination of Resuscitation (TOR) Guideline, the absence of prehospital return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC), as the single criteria to terminate resuscitation, which may deny transport to potential survivors.

Objective

This study aimed to report the survival to hospital discharge rate in non-traumatic, adult out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) patients transported to hospital without a prehospital ROSC.

Methods

An observational study of OHCA patients without a prehospital ROSC who met the Universal TOR Guideline for transport to hospital with ongoing resuscitation. Multivariable logistic regression was used to determine the association of each variable with survival to hospital discharge.

Results

Of 20,207 OHCA treated by EMS, 3374 (16.4%) did not have a prehospital ROSC but met the Universal TOR guideline for transport to hospital with ongoing resuscitation. Of these patients, 122 (3.6%) survived to hospital discharge. Survival to discharge was associated with initial shockable VF/VT rhythms (OR 5.07; 95% CI 2.77–9.30), EMS-witnessed arrests (OR 3.51; 95% CI 1.73–7.15), bystander-witnessed arrests (OR 2.11; 95% CI 1.18–3.77), and public locations (OR 1.57; 95% CI 1.02–2.40).

Conclusion

In OHCA patients without a prehospital ROSC who met the Universal TOR Guideline for transport with ongoing resuscitation survival rates were above the 1% futility rate. Employing only the lack of ROSC as criteria for termination of resuscitation may miss survivors after OHCA.     

Socioeconomic factors associated with outcome after cardiac arrest in patients under the age of 65

AimIn a prior study of seven North American cities Pittsburgh had the highest crude rate of cardiac arrest deaths in patients 18 to 64 years of age, particularly in neighborhoods with lower socioeconomic status (SES). We hypothesized that lower SES, associated poor health behaviors (e.g., illicit drug use) and pre-existing comorbid conditions (grouped as socioeconomic factors [SE factors]) could affect the type and severity of cardiac arrest, thus outcomes.MethodsWe retrospectively identified patients aged 18 to 64 years treated for in-hospital (IHCA) and out-of hospital arrest (OHCA) at two Pittsburgh hospitals between January 2010 and July 2012. We abstracted data on baseline demographics and arrest characteristics like place of residence, insurance and employment status. Favorable cerebral performance category [CPC] (1 or 2) was our primary outcome. We examined the associations between SE factors, cardiac arrest variables and outcome as well as post-resuscitation care.ResultsAmong 415 subjects who met inclusion criteria, unfavorable CPC were more common in patients who were unemployed, had a history of drug abuse or hypertension. In OHCA, favorable CPC was more often associated with presentation with ventricular fibrillation/tachycardia (OR 3.53, 95% CI 1.43–8.74, p = 0.006) and less often associated with non-cardiovascular arrest etiology (OR 0.22, 95% CI 0.08–0.62, p = 0.004). We found strong associations between specific SE factors and arrest factors associated with outcome in OHCA patients only. Significant differences in post-resuscitation care existed based on injury severity, not on SES.ConclusionsSE factors strongly influence type and severity of OHCA but not IHCA resulting in an association with outcomes.     

Outcomes from out-of-hospital cardiac arrest in Metropolitan Taipei: Does an advanced life support service make a difference?

BACKGROUND: Out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) is of major medical and public health significance. It also serves as a good indicator in assessing the performance of local emergency medical services system (EMS). There have been arguments for and against the benefits of advanced life support (ALS) over basic life support with defibrillator (BLS-D) for treating OHCA. AIMS OF THE STUDY: The study was conducted to characterise the outcomes of cardiac arrest victims in an Asian metropolitan city; to evaluate the impacts of ALS versus BLS-D services; and to explore the possible patient and arrest factors that may be associated with the observed differences in the outcomes between the two pre-hospital care models. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Taipei is an Asian metropolitan city with an area of 272 km(2) and a population of 2.65 million. The fire-based BLS-D EMS system was in the process of phasing in ALS capability. While there were 40 BLS-D teams in the 12 city districts, two ALS teams were set up in the central part of the city. In this prospective study, all adult non-traumatic OHCA from September 2003 to August 2004 were included. Patient, arrest, care, and outcome variables for OHCA victims were collected from prehospital run sheets, automatic defibrillators, and emergency department and hospital records. RESULTS: Among 1423 OHCA included in the analysis, 1037 (73%) received BLS-D service, and 386 (27%) received ALS services. The initial shockable rhythms and early bystander CPR were strongly associated with better survival for victims of cardiac arrests. Compared to BLS-D, ALS patients had similar age, sex, witness status, the rate of bystander CPR, and response timeliness but more patients in asystole (84% versus 72%, p=0.005). Patients treated by ALS were more likely to result in significantly higher rates of return of spontaneous circulation (29% versus 21%; OR=1.51 (95% CI 1.15-2.00); p=0.002) and survival to emergency department/intensive care unit admission (23% versus 15%; OR=1.66 (95% CI 1.22-2.24); p=0.001), but there was no difference in the rate of survival to hospital discharge (7% versus 5%; OR=1.39 (95% CI 0.84-2.23); p=0.17). The outcome difference from ALS services was more pronounced among patients in asystole and without bystander CPR. CONCLUSIONS: In this metropolitan EMS in Asia, the implementation of ALS services improved the intermediate, but not the final outcomes. Communities with larger populations and lower incidence of initial shockable rhythms than the OPALS study should also prioritise their resources in setting up and optimising systems of basic life support and early defibrillations. Further studies are warranted to configure the optimal care model for combating cardiac arrest.     

Comparison of chest compression only and standard cardiopulmonary resuscitation for out-of-hospital cardiac arrest in Singapore

OBJECTIVE: Chest compression only cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CC-CPR) without ventilation has been proposed as an alternative to standard cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) for bystanders. However, there has been controversy regarding the relative effectiveness of both of these techniques. We aim to compare the outcomes of cardiac arrest patients in the cardiac arrest and resuscitation epidemiology study who either received CC-CPR, standard CPR or no bystander CPR. METHODS: This prospective cohort study involved all out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) patients attended to by emergency medical service (EMS) providers in a large urban centre. The data analyses were conducted secondarily on these collected data. The technique of bystander CPR was reported by paramedics who arrived at the scene. RESULTS: From 1 October 2001 to 14 October 2004, 2428 patients were enrolled into the study. Of these, 255 were EMS-witnessed arrests and were excluded. 1695 cases did not receive any bystander CPR, 287 had standard CPR and 154 CC-CPR. Patient characteristics were similar in both the standard and CC-CPR groups except for a higher incidence of residential arrests and previous heart disease sufferers in the CC-CPR group. Patients who received standard CPR (odds ratio (OR) 5.4, 95% confidence interval (CI) 2.1-14.0) or CC-CPR (OR 5.0, 95% CI 1.5-16.4) were more likely to survive to discharge than those who had no bystander CPR. There was no significant difference in survival to discharge between those who received CC-CPR and standard CPR (OR 0.9, 95% CI 0.3-3.1). CONCLUSION: We found that patients were more likely to survive with any form of bystander CPR than without. This emphasises the importance of chest compressions for OHCA patients, whether with or without ventilation.     

Antidepressant use and risk of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest: a nationwide case-time-control study

Treatment with some types of antidepressants has been associated with sudden cardiac death. It is unknown whether the increased risk is due to a class effect or related to specific antidepressants within drug classes. All patients in Denmark with an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) were identified (2001-2007). Association between treatment with specific antidepressants and OHCA was examined by conditional logistic regression in case-time-control models. We identified 19,110 patients with an OHCA; 2,913 (15.2%) were receiving antidepressant treatment at the time of OHCA, with citalopram being the most frequently used type of antidepressant (50.8%). Tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs; odds ratio (OR) = 1.69, confidence interval (CI): 1.14-2.50) and selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs; OR = 1.21, CI: 1.00-1.47) were both associated with comparable increases in risk of OHCA, whereas no association was found for serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors/noradrenergic and specific serotonergic antidepressants (SNRIs/NaSSAs; OR = 1.06, CI: 0.81-1.39). The increased risks were primarily driven by: citalopram (OR = 1.29, CI: 1.02-1.63) and nortriptyline (OR = 5.14, CI: 2.17-12.2). An association between cardiac arrest and antidepressant use could be documented in both the SSRI and TCA classes of drugs.     

Limited Response to Cardiac Arrest by Police Equipped with Automated External Defibrillators: Lack of Survival Benefit in Suburban and Rural Indiana—The Police as Responder Automated Defibrillation Evaluation (PARADE)

OBJECTIVE: To assess the out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) survival advantage after providing police with automated external defibrillators (AEDs) in rural and suburban Indiana. METHODS: An observational evaluation was conducted in six Indiana counties (population: 464,741) before (retrospective) and after (prospective) training and equipping police with AEDs. The primary outcome evaluated was survival to hospital discharge for all cases of ventricular tachycardia/ventricular fibrillation (VT/VF) OHCA. Other factors evaluated include age, gender, race, arrest location, witnessed arrest, bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation, response intervals, and survival to discharge for all OHCAs. Results are reported using chi-square, Student's t-test, and logistic regression. RESULTS: Police were equipped with 112 AEDs, increasing total defibrillator capability by 43.2%. During the study period, AED-equipped police responded prior to emergency medical services (EMS) in 26 of 388 cases (6.7%). The time intervals from 911 call-to-scene and 911 call-to-shock were shortened by 1.6 minutes (95% confidence interval [95% CI] = 0.0 to 3.1, p = 0.05) and 4.8 minutes (95% CI = 1.3 to 8.3, p = 0.008), respectively, with police response as compared with EMS response. Survival to hospital discharge for VT/VF OHCA was 15.0% (3/20) in cases in which police responded first and 10.0% (16/160) in cases in which EMS responded first (relative risk [RR] 0.63, 95% CI = 0.17 to 2.39, p = 0.45). Survival to hospital discharge for VT/VF OHCA did not improve from the prestudy period (16/204, 7.8%) to after police AED availability (19/180, 10.6%) (RR 0.72, 95% CI = 0.36 to 1.45, p = 0.38). CONCLUSIONS: Out-of-hospital cardiac arrest survival in suburban and rural Indiana did not improve after police were equipped with AEDs, likely related to poor police response.     

Higher 1-year mortality in women admitted to intensive care units after cardiac arrest: A nationwide overview from the Netherlands between 2010 and 2018

PurposeWe study sex differences in 1-year mortality of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) and in-hospital cardiac arrest (IHCA) patients admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU).DataA retrospective cohort analysis of OHCA and IHCA patients registered in the NICE registry in the Netherlands. The primary and secondary outcomes were 1-year and hospital mortality, respectively.ResultsWe included 19,440 OHCA patients (5977 women, 30.7%) and 13,461 IHCA patients (4889 women, 36.3%). For OHCA, 1-year mortality was 63.9% in women and 52.6% in men (Hazard Ratio [HR] 1.28, 95% Confidence Interval [95% CI] 1.23–1.34). For IHCA, 1-year mortality was 60.0% in women and 57.0% in men (HR 1.09, 95% CI 1.04–1.14). In OHCA, hospital mortality was 57.4% in women and 46.5% in men (Odds Ratio [OR] 1.42, 95% CI 1.33–1.52). In IHCA, hospital mortality was 52.0% in women and 48.2% in men (OR 1.11, 95% CI 1.03–1.20).ConclusionWomen admitted to the ICU after cardiac arrest have a higher mortality rate than men. After left-truncation, we found that this sex difference persisted for OHCA. For IHCA we found that the effect of sex was mainly present in the initial phase after the cardiac arrest.     

Association between ambulance response time and neurologic outcome in patients with cardiac arrest

PurposeEmergency medical services (EMS) response time is one of prehospital factors associated with survival rate of patients with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA). The objective of this study was to determine whether short EMS response time was associated with improved neurologic outcome of patients with OHCA through prospective analysis.MethodsWe performed a prospective observational analysis of collected data from KoCARC registry between October 2015 and December 2016. OHCA patients aged 18 years or older with presumed cardiac etiology by emergency physicians in emergency department were included in this study.ResultsOf 3187 cardiac arrest patients enrolled in the KoCARC registry, 2309 patients were included in the final analysis. Response time threshold was 11.5 min for prehospital return of spontaneous circulation and 7.5 min for survival to discharge and favorable neurologic outcome. Patients in the ≤7.5 min response time group showed increased odds of survival to discharge (OR: 1.54, 95% CI: 1.13–2.10, p = .006) and favorable neurologic recovery (OR: 2.01, 95% CI: 1.36–2.99, p = .001). When response time was decreased by 1 min, all outcomes were improved (survival to discharge, OR: 1.08; 95% CI: 1.04–1.12, p < .001; favorable neurological outcome, OR: 1.14, 95% CI: 1.07–1.21, p < .001).ConclusionWe found that shorter EMS response time could lead to favorable neurologic outcome in patients with OHCA of presumed cardiac origin. EMS response time threshold associated with improved favorable outcome was ≤7.5 min.     

Prehospital Predictors of Initial Shockable Rhythm in Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest: Findings From the Taichung Sudden Unexpected Death Registry (THUNDER)

Objective

To identify the incidence and prehospital predictors of ventricular tachycardia/ventricular fibrillation (VT/VF) as the initial arrhythmia in patients with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) in central Taiwan.

Results of the first five years of the prehospital automatic external defibrillation project in Singapore in the "Utstein style"

In 1994, all emergency medical services (EMS) ambulance officers in Singapore were trained to perform pre-hospital defibrillation with semi-automated external defibrillators (AED). All non-traumatic cardiac arrest patients over 10 years old were included, excluding those who were obviously dead and children below 36 kg. The data were collected by the ambulance officers according to the Utstein guidelines. From 1 February 1994 to 31 January 1999; resuscitation was attempted in 968 non-trauma cardiac arrests. Fifteen percent of the cases were of non-cardiac origin. The overall survival rate was 40/968 (4.1%, 95% CI 2.9-5.6%). Of 968 patients, 22/136 (16.2%, 95% CI 10.4-23.5%), 18/622 (2.9%, 95% CI 1.7-4.5%) and 0/210 (0%, 95% CI 0-1.7%) survived in the EMS witnessed, bystander witnessed and un-witnessed groups, respectively (P < 0.001). Within the EMS witnessed group, those with an initial rhythm of VF/VT had a higher survival rate (30.6%) than those without VF/VT (4.1%). P < 0.001, OR = 10.3, 95% CI 2.9-36.9. Similarly, the VF/VT survival rate in the bystander witnessed group (4.5%) was higher than the non-VF/VT (1.0%) (P = 0.011, OR = 4.4, 95% CI 1.3-15.4). The survival rate of patients with bystander witnessed VF/VT arrest who received bystander CPR was 9.4% compared to 1.0% in those who did not (P = 0.037, OR = 4.4, 95% CI 1.01-20.1). Our survival rate of bystander witnessed VF/VT arrest is comparable to large metropolitan cities in the USA. The determinants of survival include EMS witnessed arrest and VF/VT arrest. Increased quantity and quality of bystander CPR rate may improve the outcome in bystander witnessed cardiac arrest.     

Ventricular fibrillation in Rochester, Minnesota: Experience over 18 years

ObjectiveSurvival following out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) continues to be disappointingly low world-wide, despite advances in technology and international guidelines for resuscitation. Few cities or emergency medical service (EMS) agencies report patient outcomes after OHCA. Among those who do, survival from witnessed VF ranges from 7.7% to 39.9%, with only a few cities reporting rates higher than this. We report outcomes and incidence of VF OHCA over 18 years in a medium-sized city incorporating an aggressive approach to OHCA.MethodsThe city, which increased in population over the study period from 70,000 to 100,000 persons, utilizes an emergency response system which dispatches defibrillator-equipped police, fire-rescue and ambulance personnel simultaneously. Police and fire-rescue personnel are equipped with automated external defibrillators (AEDs). Advanced life-support is provided as needed by paramedics.ResultsThere were 454 arrests during the study period attributed to a cardiac cause. Of 271 bystander-witnessed arrests, 203 (74.9%) were in VF and 94 (46.3%) were discharged. Average time from 9-1-1 call to shock was relatively short: mean 6.5 min (S.D. 2.5 min). In a multivariable model, the interval from call to shock was strongly associated with neurologically intact survival (OR 0.72, 95% CI: 0.61–0.84 for each additional minute). The age- and sex-adjusted incidence of EMS-treated VF OHCA significantly (p < 0.001) declined over the study period: 1991–1999: 37.9/100,000 (95% CI: 31.8–44.0), 2000–2008: 17.8/100,000 (95% CI: 14.4–21.2).ConclusionsHigh survival from witnessed VF OHCA (46.3%) was achieved during the study period. Rapid response, and therefore rapid defibrillation, was the major contributor to survival.     

Cardiocerebral Resuscitation Is Associated With Improved Survival and Neurologic Outcome from Out‐of‐hospital Cardiac Arrest in Elders

Background: Recent studies have shown that a new emergency medical services (EMS) protocol for treating patients who suffer out‐of‐hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA), cardiocerebral resuscitation (CCR), significantly improves survival compared to standard advanced life support (ALS). However, due to their different physiology, it is unclear if all elders, or any subsets of elders who are OHCA victims, would benefit from the CCR protocol. Objectives: The objectives of this analysis were to compare survival by age group for patients receiving CCR and ALS, to evaluate their neurologic outcome, and to determine what other factors affect survival in the subset of patients who do receive CCR. Methods: An analysis was performed of 3,515 OHCAs occurring between January 2005 and September 2008 in the Save Hearts in Arizona Registry. A total of 1,024 of these patients received CCR. Pediatric patients and arrests due to drowning, respiratory, or traumatic causes were excluded. The registry included data from 62 EMS agencies, some of which instituted CCR. Outcome measures included survival to hospital discharge and cerebral performance category (CPC) scores. Logistic regression evaluated outcomes in patients who received CCR versus standard ALS across age groups, adjusted for known potential confounders, including bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), witnessed arrest, EMS dispatch‐to‐arrival time, ventricular fibrillation (Vfib), and agonal respirations on EMS arrival. Predictors of survival evaluated included age, sex, location, bystander CPR, witnessed arrest, Vfib/ventricular tachycardia (Vtach), response time, and agonal breathing, based on bivariate results. Backward stepwise selection was used to confirm predictors of survival. These predictors were then analyzed with logistic regression by age category per 10 years of age. Results: Individuals who received CCR had better outcomes across age groups. The increase in survival for the subgroup with a witnessed Vfib was most prominent on those <40 years of age (3.7% for standard ALS patients vs. 19% for CCR patients, odds ratio [OR] = 5.94, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.82 to 19.26). This mortality benefit declined with age until the ≥80 years age group, which regained the benefit (1.8% vs. 4.6%, OR = 2.56, 95% CI = 1.10 to 5.97). Neurologic outcomes were also better in the patients who received CCR (OR = 6.64, 95% CI = 1.31 to 32.8). Within the subgroup that received CCR, the factors most predictive of improved survival included witnessed arrest, initial rhythm of Vfib/Vtach, agonal respirations upon arrival, EMS response time, and age. Neurologic outcome was not adversely affected by age. Conclusions: Cardiocerebral resuscitation is associated with better survival from OHCA in most age groups. The majority of patients in all age groups who survived to hospital discharge and who could be reached for follow‐up had good neurologic outcome. Among patients receiving CCR for OHCA, witnessed arrest, Vfib/Vtach, agonal respirations, and early response time are significant predictors of survival, and these do not change significantly based on age. ACADEMIC EMERGENCY MEDICINE 2010; 17:269–275 © 2010 by the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine     

Beta-blocker use and the changing epidemiology of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest rhythms

BACKGROUND: The incidence of ventricular fibrillation (VF) as the presenting rhythm in out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) is declining, whereas pulseless electrical activity (PEA) is increasing. This changing epidemiology has occurred concomitant with an increase in beta-blocker use. AIMS: The aim of this study was to measure the association of beta-blocker use among prehospital cardiac arrest patients with PEA versus VF as presenting rhythm. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this retrospective cohort study, records of all OHCA patients presenting to a single municipal hospital between 1 January 2001 and 31 December 2006 were reviewed. Age, sex, race, first documented rhythm, estimated down time, presence of bystander CPR, return of spontaneous circulation, beta-blocker use, and comorbid illnesses were noted. A Mantel-Haenzel chi-square was computed to describe the association between beta-blocker use and PEA, compared to beta-blocker use and VF. A sensitivity analysis was also performed to account for missing data, misclassification of beta-blocker use, misclassification of initial rhythm, confounding by unknown factors, and random error. RESULTS: After exclusion of patients with asystole and patients in whom beta-blocker use was unclear/unknown, a cohort of 179 arrests was evaluated. The odds ratio for beta-blocker use among PEA versus VF patients was 3.7 (95% CI 1.9-7.2), and probabilistic adjustment for exposure and outcome misclassification, confounding, and random error increased the odds ratio to 5.0 (95% CI 1.1-31.0). CONCLUSIONS: There appears to be an association between beta-blockers and the changing epidemiology of arrest rhythms, which may account for the increasing incidence of PEA and concomitant decrease in VF.     

Severe or critical hypotension during post cardiac arrest care is associated with factors available on admission - a post hoc analysis of the TTH48 trial

PurposeWe explored whether severe or critical hypotension can be predicted, based on patient and resuscitation characteristics in out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) patients. We also explored the association of hypotension with mortality and neurological outcome.Materials and methodsWe conducted a post hoc analysis of the TTH48 study (NCT01689077), where 355 out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) patients were randomized to targeted temperature management (TTM) treatment at 33 °C for either 24 or 48 h. We recorded hypotension, according to four severity categories, within four days from admission. We used multivariable logistic regression analysis to test association of admission data with severe or critical hypotension.ResultsDiabetes mellitus (OR 3.715, 95% CI 1.180–11.692), longer ROSC delay (OR 1.064, 95% CI 1.022–1.108), admission MAP (OR 0.960, 95% CI 0.929–0.991) and non-shockable rhythm (OR 5.307, 95% CI 1.604–17.557) were associated with severe or critical hypotension. Severe or critical hypotension was associated with increased mortality and poor neurological outcome at 6 months.ConclusionsDiabetes, non-shockable rhythm, longer delay to ROSC and lower admission MAP were predictors of severe or critical hypotension. Severe or critical hypotension was associated with poor outcome.     

Hepatic portal venous gas associated with poor outcome in out-of-hospital cardiac arrest patients

Objectives: To determine the incidence of sonographic hepatic portal venous gas (HPVG) and to clarify the relationship between the presence of HPVG and clinical outcomes in patients with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA). Methods: From April 2002 to January 2003, patients with non-traumatic OHCA were prospectively enrolled in a tertiary medical centre in Taipei, Taiwan. Emergency abdominal sonography during resuscitation was performed to detect the presence of HPVG within the first 10 min on arrival of the emergency department (ED). Results: HPVG was detected in 16 (36%) of the 44 patients enrolled in this study. The patients with HPVG were older (P=0.039), their cardiac arrest was witnessed less frequently (P=0.01), they received more prolonged resuscitation (P=0.008), and needed more accumulated doses of adrenaline (epinephrine) (P=0.002). These patients had a considerably lower incidence of return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC) (P<0.001), less survival to hospital admission (P<0.001), less 24 h survival (P<0.001) and less survival to discharge (P=0.036). In a multiple regression analysis, HPVG was noted as an independent factor negatively associated with ROSC. Conclusion: HPVG is not uncommon in patients receiving resuscitation for OHCA and is associated with poor outcome in these patients.     

Cardiocerebral resuscitation vs cardiopulmonary resuscitation for cardiac arrest: a systematic review

Objective

The objective of this study is to evaluate the efficacy of cardiocerebral resuscitation (CCR) vs cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) for patients with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA).

Methods

We conducted a systematic review of controlled trials and observational studies. We searched Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials; MEDLINE; Embase; and Chinese databases such as VIP, CNKI, WANFANG, and CBM from their inception to September 2010. Data from original studies were extracted and assessed with predefined criteria.

Results

Thirteen studies comprising 3 randomized controlled trials and 10 observational studies were included. Pooled analysis of 4 observational studies suggested that neurologically intact survival of patients with OHCA was improved in CCR group (odds ratio [OR], 1.45; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.07-1.97). Survival to hospital discharge in the CCR group was superior or at least equal to that in CPR group (randomized controlled trial OR, 1.25; 95% CI, 1.01-1.55; cohort studies OR, 1.15; 95% CI, 0.72-1.82; case-control studies OR 0.85; 95% CI, 0.65-1.12). In the subgroup analysis of patients with a shockable rhythm as an initial rhythm, survival to hospital discharge was significantly improved in the CCR group (cohort studies OR, 2.03; 95% CI, 1.44-2.86). However, when only noncardiac origin cardiac arrest was taken into consideration, survival rate was better in the CPR group (cohort studies OR, 0.87; 95% CI, 0.77-0.98).

Conclusion

Cardiocerebral resuscitation might be equivalent or superior to CPR in patients with OHCA in both survival rate and neurologic benefits. Further work is needed to assess the efficacy of CCR for victims who had OHCA of noncardiac causes.     

Comparison of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest occurring before and after paramedic arrival: Epidemiology,survival to hospital discharge and 12-month functional recovery

BackgroundDespite immediate resuscitation, survival rates following out-of-hospital cardiac arrests (OHCA) witnessed by emergency medical service (EMS) are reportedly low. We sought to compare survival and 12-month functional recovery outcomes for OHCA occurring before and after EMS arrival.MethodsBetween 1st July 2008 and 30th June 2013, we included 8648 adult OHCA cases receiving an EMS attempted resuscitation from the Victorian Ambulance Cardiac Arrest Registry, and categorised them into five groups: bystander witnessed cases ± bystander CPR, unwitnessed cases ± bystander CPR, and EMS witnessed cases. The main outcomes were survival to hospital and survival to hospital discharge. Twelve-month survival with good functional recovery was measured in a sub-group of patients using the Extended Glasgow Outcome Scale (GOSE).ResultsBaseline and arrest characteristics differed significantly across groups. Unadjusted survival outcomes were highest among bystander witnessed cases receiving bystander CPR and EMS witnessed cases, however outcomes differed significantly between these groups: survival to hospital (46.0% vs. 53.4% respectively, p < 0.001); survival to hospital discharge (21.1% vs. 34.9% respectively, p < 0.001). When compared to bystander witnessed cases receiving bystander CPR, EMS witnessed cases were associated with a significant improvement in the risk adjusted odds of survival to hospital (OR 2.02, 95% CI: 1.75–2.35), survival to hospital discharge (OR 6.16, 95% CI: 5.04–7.52) and survival to 12 months with good functional recovery (OR 5.56, 95% CI: 4.18–7.40).ConclusionWhen compared to OHCA occurring prior to EMS arrival, EMS witnessed arrests were associated with significantly higher survival to hospital discharge rates and favourable neurological recovery at 12-month post-arrest.     

Examining the contextual effects of neighborhood on out-of-hospital cardiac arrest and the provision of bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation

Objective

To understand the association between neighborhood and individual characteristics in determining whether or not bystanders perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) in cases of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA).

Methods

Between October 1, 2005 to November 30, 2008, 1108 OHCA cases from Fulton County (Atlanta), GA, were eligible for bystander CPR. We conducted multi-level non-linear regression analysis and derived Empirical Bayes estimates for bystander CPR by census tract.

Results

279 (25%) cardiac arrest victims received bystander CPR. Provision of bystander CPR was significantly more common in witnessed events (odds ratio [OR] 1.64; 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.21-2.22, p < 0.001) and those that occurred in public locations (OR 1.67; 95% CI 1.16-2.40, p < 0.001). Other individual-level characteristics were not significantly associated with bystander CPR. Cardiac arrests in the census tracts that rank in the highest income quintile, as compared to the lowest income quintile were much more likely (OR 4.98; 95% CI 1.65-15.04) to receive bystander CPR.

Conclusion

Cardiac arrest victims in the highest income census tracts were much more likely to receive bystander CPR than in the lowest income census tracts, even after controlling for individual and arrest characteristics. Low-income neighborhoods may be particularly appropriate targets for community-based CPR training and awareness efforts.