INTRODUCTION

Cardiac arrest occurs when abrupt cessation of cardiac function results in loss of effective circulation and complete cardiovascular collapse. For every minute of cardiac arrest without early intervention (cardiopulmonary resuscitation [CPR], defibrillation), chances of survival drop by 7 – 10%. It is crucial that CPR be initiated within 4 – 6 minutes to avoid brain death. Most out-of-hospital cardiac arrests (OHCA) occur in a residential setting where access to trained personnel and equipment is not readily available, resulting in poor victim outcomes.

This descriptive study was done from August to November 2021 using a prospective cohort design. Participants of the study include adult patients aged 18 years and above brought to the emergency room who suffered from out-ofhospital cardiac arrest. Out of the total 102 cases of OHCA, 63 participants were included in the study. Descriptive statistics was used to summarize the demographic and clinical characteristics of the patients.

Forty-three subjects were male patients, comprising the majority at 73.02%. Hypertension was identified as the top comorbidity, followed by diabetes mellitus, heart failure, and chronic kidney disease (CKD). Medical causes of arrest were identified in 96.83% of the cases. 90.48% of cardiac arrests occurred at home. Only 26 patients (41.27%) received prehospital intervention before ER arrival, comprising only hands-on CPR. Twenty-three of these were performed by individuals with background knowledge of CPR. 60.32% were brought via self-conduction, the remainder by ambulances, which were noted to have no available equipment necessary to provide proper resuscitation. The average travel time from dispatch to
ER arrival is 20 minutes.

Overall survival of OHCA in our local setting remains dismal, as the return of spontaneous circulation was not achieved in any of the patients. The small number of patients having pre-hospital CPR indicates the need for emphasis on training and community education.

Out-of-hospital Cardiac Arrest ; Heart Arrest ; Policy ; Covid-19 ; Pandemics

INTRODUCTION: Out-of-hospital-cardiac-arrest (OHCA) is a major public health challenge and post-return-of-spontaneous-circulation (ROSC) goals have shifted from just survival to survival with intact neurology. Although post-ROSC care is crucial for survival with intact neurology, there are insufficient well-established protocols for post-resuscitation care. We aimed to evaluate post-resuscitation care in the emergency department (ED) of adult (aged ≥16 years) OHCA patients with sustained ROSC and its associated neurologically intact survival. METHODS: A retrospective review of electronic medical records was conducted for OHCA patients with sustained ROSC at the ED. Data including demographics, pre-hospital resuscitation, ED resuscitation, post-resuscitation care and eventual outcomes were analysed. RESULTS: Among 921 OHCA patients, 85 (9.2%) had sustained ROSC at the ED. Nineteen patients (19/85, 22.4%) survived, with 13 (13/85, 15.3%) having intact neurology at discharge. Electrocardiogram and chest X-ray were performed in all OHCA patients, whereas computed tomography (CT) was performed inconsistently, with CT brain being most common (74/85, 87.1%), while CT pulmonary angiogram (6/85, 7.1%), abdomen and pelvis (4/85, 4.7%) and aortogram (2/85, 2.4%) were done infrequently. Only four patients (4.7%) had all five neuroprotective goals of normoxia, normocarbia, normotension, normothermia and normoglycaemia achieved in the ED. The proportion of all five neuroprotective goals being met was significantly higher ( P = 0.01) among those with neurologically intact survival (3/13, 23.1%) than those without (1/72, 1.4%). CONCLUSION Post-resuscitation care at the ED showed great variability, indicating gaps between recommended guidelines and clinical practice. Good quality post-resuscitation care, centred around neuroprotection goals, must be initiated promptly to achieve meaningful survival with intact neurology.
Humans ; Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest/mortality* ; Retrospective Studies ; Male ; Female ; Middle Aged ; Emergency Service, Hospital ; Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation/methods* ; Return of Spontaneous Circulation ; Aged ; Adult ; Treatment Outcome ; Electrocardiography ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed ; Aged, 80 and over

BACKGROUND: A comprehensive understanding of the epidemiology of pediatric out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) occurring under school supervision is lacking. We aimed to comprehensively describe the characteristics and outcomes of OHCA among students in elementary schools, junior high schools, high schools, and technical colleges in Japan. METHODS: OHCA data from 2008-2021 were obtained from the SPIRITS study, which provides a nationwide database of OHCAs occurring under school supervision across Japan. We included cases in which resuscitation was attempted by emergency medical service personnel or bystanders. The cases were classified into three groups based on their etiology: cardiac, non-cardiac, and traumatic origin. The primary outcome was one-month survival with favorable neurological outcomes, defined as a Glasgow-Pittsburgh cerebral performance category of 1 or 2. The demographic characteristics, event details, and outcomes were compared across the three groups by using χ² tests for categorical variables and one-way analyses of variance for continuous variables. RESULTS: During the 14-year study period, 602 OHCA cases were confirmed, with 430 (71.4%) classified as cardiac, 91 (15.1%) as non-cardiac, and 81 (13.5%) as traumatic origin. Non-cardiac and traumatic cases were less likely to be witnessed at the time of arrest (46.2% and 42.0%, respectively) than cardiac cases (82.6%; p < 0.001). Initiation of cardiopulmonary resuscitation by bystanders was less common in non-cardiac and traumatic cases (62.6% and 42.0%, respectively) than that in cardiac cases (82.8%; p < 0.001). The delivery of defibrillation using public-access automated external defibrillators was also significantly less frequent in non-cardiac (3.3%) and traumatic cases (6.2%) than that in cardiac cases (59.8%; p < 0.001). Ventricular fibrillation (VF) as the first documented rhythm was observed in 77.9% of cardiac cases but was much less common in non-cardiac (5.5%) and traumatic cases (8.6%; p < 0.001). One-month survival with favorable neurological outcomes was significantly lower in non-cardiac (6.6%) and traumatic cases (0%) than that in cardiac cases (50.2%; p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS OHCAs of cardiac origin were more frequently associated with VF and had relatively good prognoses. In contrast, OHCAs of non-cardiac and traumatic origins consistently resulted in poor outcomes, highlighting the critical importance of prevention strategies to reduce the occurrence of these incidents.
Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest/etiology* ; Humans ; Japan/epidemiology* ; Male ; Female ; Child ; Students/statistics & numerical data* ; Schools/statistics & numerical data* ; Adolescent ; Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation/statistics & numerical data* ; Emergency Medical Services/statistics & numerical data* ; Epidemiologic Studies

Humans ; Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest/therapy* ; China/epidemiology*

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the prognostic value of hemoglobin-to-red cell distribution width ratio (HRR) in patients with cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) after out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA). METHODS: A retrospective study was conducted. Patients aged ≥ 18 years with OHCA who were transferred to intensive care unit (ICU) after successful CPR from the emergency room of the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University from August 2016 to February 2022 were enrolled. General clinical data, initial vital signs, acute physiology and chronic health evaluation II (APACHE II), Glasgow coma scale (GCS), first laboratory indicators after admission to ICU [including white blood cell count (WBC), red blood cell count (RBC), hemoglobin (Hb), pH value, lactic acid (Lac), 6-hour lactic acid clearance (LCR), red cell distribution width (RDW), HRR], length of ICU stay were collected. According to whether the patients died in hospital, the patients were divided into survival group and death group. Binary Logistic regression was used to analyze the independent factors influencing the prognosis of patients after CPR. Receiver operator characteristic curve (ROC curve) was drawn to analyze the predictive value of independent influencing factors for the prognosis of patients after CPR. RESULTS: A total of 122 patients were enrolled after OHCA CPR, of which 88 died in hospital, the in-hospital mortality was 72.13%. There were no significant differences in age, past medical history, initial vital signs and WBC in ICU between the two groups. Compared with the death group, the survival group had higher GCS score, RBC, Hb, pH value, 6-hour LCR, HRR, lower APACHE II score, Lac, RDW level, and longer length of ICU stay. Multivariate Logistic regression analysis showed that APACHE II score, GCS score, 6-hour LCR, HRR, length of ICU stay were independent factors influencing the prognosis of patients after CPR [APACHE II score: odds ratio (OR) = 0.784, 95% confidence interval (95%CI) was 0.683-0.901, P = 0.001; GCS score: OR = 1.390, 95%CI was 1.059-1.823, P = 0.018; 6-hour LCR: OR = 1.039, 95%CI was 1.015-1.064, P = 0.001; HRR: OR = 2.047, 95%CI was 1.383-3.029, P < 0.001; length of ICU stay: OR = 1.128, 95%CI was 1.046-1.216, P = 0.002]. ROC curve analysis showed that HRR, 6-hour LCR and APACHE II score could predict the prognosis of patients after CPR. The sensitivity was 85.3% and the specificity was 54.5% when the area under the ROC curve (AUC) of HRR was 0.731, and the cut-off value was 8.555. The sensitivity was 88.2% and the specificity was 46.6%, when the AUC of 6-hour LCR was 0.701, and the cut-off value was 28.947%. The sensitivity was 73.9% and the specificity was 79.4% when the AUC of APACHE II score was 0.848, the cut-off value was 22.000. The predictive value of the combination of HRR and 6-hour LCR was higher than that of a single index. The sensitivity was 79.3% and the specificity was 76.1%, when the AUC was 0.796, the cut-off value was 0.296. CONCLUSIONS HRR, 6-hour LCR and APACHE II score have high prognostic value in patients with OHCA after CPR. HRR < 8.555, 6-hour LCR < 28.947% and APACHE II score > 22.000 indicated poor prognosis.
Humans ; Erythrocyte Indices ; Prognosis ; Retrospective Studies ; Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest/therapy* ; ROC Curve ; Intensive Care Units ; Hemoglobins ; Lactic Acid ; Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation ; Sepsis/diagnosis*

Humans ; Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest/etiology*

Adult ; Humans ; Heart Arrest/therapy* ; Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation ; Emergency Service, Hospital ; Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest/therapy* ; Treatment Outcome

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the effect of mechanical cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) on patients with cardiac arrest with the vertical spatial pre-hospital emergency transport. METHODS: A retrospective cohort study was conducted. The clinical data of 102 patients with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) who were transferred to the emergency medicine department of Huzhou Central Hospital from the Huzhou Emergency Center from July 2019 to June 2021 were collected. Among them, the patients who performed artificial chest compression during the pre-hospital transfer from July 2019 to June 2020 served as the control group, and the patients who performed artificial-mechanical chest compression (implemented artificial chest compression first, and implemented mechanical chest compression immediately after the mechanical chest compression device was ready) during pre-hospital transfer from July 2020 to June 2021 served as the observation group. The clinical data of patients of the two groups were collected, including basic data (gender, age, etc.), pre-hospital emergency process evaluation indicators [chest compression fraction (CCF), total CPR pause time, pre-hospital transfer time, vertical spatial transfer time], and in-hospital advanced resuscitation effect evaluation indicators [initial end-expiratory partial pressure of carbon dioxide (P_ETCO₂), rate of restoration of spontaneous circulation (ROSC), time of ROSC]. RESULTS: Finally, a total of 84 patients were enrolled, including 46 patients in the control group and 38 in the observation group. There was no significant difference in gender, age, whether to accept bystander resuscitation or not, initial cardiac rhythm, time-consuming pre-hospital emergency response, floor location at the time of onset, estimated vertical height, and whether there was any vertical transfer elevator/escalator, etc. between the two groups. In the evaluation of the pre-hospital emergency process, the CCF during the pre-hospital emergency treatment of patients in the observation group was significantly higher than that in the control group [69.05% (67.35%, 71.73%) vs. 61.88% (58.18%, 65.04%), P < 0.01], the total pause time of CPR was significantly shorter than that in the control group [s: 266 (214, 307) vs. 332 (257, 374), P < 0.05]. However, there was no significant difference in the pre-hospital transfer time and vertical spatial transfer time between the observation group and the control group [pre-hospital transfer time (minutes): 14.50 (12.00, 16.75) vs. 14.00 (11.00, 16.00), vertical spatial transfer time (s): 32.15±17.43 vs. 27.96±18.67, both P > 0.05]. It indicated that mechanical CPR could improve the CPR quality in the process of pre-hospital first aid, and did not affect the transfer of patients by pre-hospital emergency medical personnel. In the evaluation of the in-hospital advanced resuscitation effect, the initial P_ETCO₂ of the patients in the observation group was significantly higher than that of the patients in the control group [mmHg (1 mmHg ≈ 0.133 kPa): 15.00 (13.25, 16.00) vs. 12.00 (11.00, 13.00), P < 0.01], the time of ROSC was significantly shorter than that in the control group (minutes: 11.00±3.25 vs. 16.64±2.54, P < 0.01), and the rate of ROSC was slightly higher than that in the control group (31.58% vs. 23.91%, P > 0.05). It indicated that continuous mechanical compression during pre-hospital transfer helped to ensure continuous high-quality CPR. CONCLUSIONS Mechanical chest compression can improve the quality of continuous CPR during the pre-hospital transfer of patients with OHCA, and improve the initial resuscitation outcome of patients.
Humans ; Cohort Studies ; Carbon Dioxide ; Retrospective Studies ; Hospitals ; Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest ; Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation

INTRODUCTION: It remains unclear which advanced airway device has better placement success and fewer adverse events in out-of-hospital cardiac arrests (OHCAs). This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of the VBM laryngeal tube (LT) against the laryngeal mask airway (LMA) in OHCAs managed by emergency ambulances in Singapore. METHODS: This was a real-world, prospective, cluster-randomised crossover study. All OHCA patients above 13 years of age who were suitable for resuscitation were randomised to receive either LT or LMA. The primary outcome was placement success. Per-protocol analysis was performed, and the association between outcomes and airway device group was compared using multivariate binomial logistic regression analysis. RESULTS: Of 965 patients with OHCAs from March 2016 to January 2018, 905 met the inclusion criteria, of whom 502 (55.5%) were randomised to receive LT while 403 (44.5%) were randomised to receive LMA. Only 174 patients in the LT group actually received the device owing to noncompliance. Placement success rate for LT was lower than for LMA (adjusted odds ratio [OR] 0.52, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.31-0.90). Complications were more likely when using LT (OR 2.82,0 95% CI 1.64-4.86). Adjusted OR for prehospital return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC) was similar in both groups. A modified intention-to-treat analysis showed similar outcomes to the per-protocol analysis between the groups. CONCLUSION LT was associated with poorer placement success and higher complication rates than LMA. The likelihood of prehospital ROSC was similar between the two groups. Familiarity bias and a low compliance rate to LT were the main limitations of this study.
Allied Health Personnel ; Humans ; Intubation, Intratracheal ; Laryngeal Masks ; Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest/therapy* ; Prospective Studies ; Singapore