Resuscitation
-
In the Austrian emergency medical service (EMS), emergency medical technician-staffed and physician-staffed vehicles are in operation. Patients with suspected acute coronary syndromes (ACS) are treated in the pre-hospital phase and transported to the hospital by an emergency physician (EP). This study evaluates the diagnostic performance of EPs in ACS and the impact of this emergency system on the outcome of ACS in an urban area. ⋯ The percentage of ACS patients transported to hospital by an EP is very low, and EPs seem to be "over-aware" in the diagnosis of ACS.
-
We report the case of a victim of deep accidental hypothermia who was extracted from the ice and received 1.5 h of mechanical chest compression. This was followed with rapid rewarming on cardiopulmonary bypass and resulted in good physical and mental recovery. This management option should be considered for similar victims.
-
An impedance threshold valve (ITV) is a new airway adjunct for resuscitation that permits generation of a small vacuum in the chest during the recoil phase of chest compression. ⋯ An ITV can augment perfusion during CPR. The observed effectiveness of ITVs in the laboratory and in the clinic suggests a thoracic pump mechanism for Standard CPR, and perhaps also an effective compression threshold that must be exceeded to generate blood flow by external chest compression.