Prehospital emergency care : official journal of the National Association of EMS Physicians and the National Association of State EMS Directors
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Extracorporeal Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (ECPR) is now considered for the treatment of refractory cardiac arrest. ⋯ Patients eligible for ECPR must be selected according to strict criteria. Further research is necessary to compare prehospital and in-hospital implementation.
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Out-of-hospital cardiac arrests (OHCA) in high-rise buildings experience lower survival and longer delays until paramedic arrival. Use of publicly accessible automated external defibrillators (AED) can improve survival, but "vertical" placement has not been studied. We aim to determine whether elevator-based or lobby-based AED placement results in shorter vertical distance travelled ("response distance") to OHCAs in a high-rise building. ⋯ Elevator-based AEDs travel less vertical distance to OHCAs in tall buildings or those with uniform vertical risk, while lobby-based AEDs travel less vertical distance in buildings with substantial lobby, underground, and nearby street-level traffic and OHCA risk.
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Describe prehospital Emergency Medical Services (EMS) providers' beliefs regarding spinal precautions for pediatric trauma transport. ⋯ EMS providers believe that rigid cervical collars and long backboards with soft conforming surfaces provide optimal spinal precautions. There were no consensus beliefs, however, for use of particular precautions based on age and risk factors.
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Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) after a drowning episode is performed under fatigue conditions. However, the characterization of CPR in this context is still unknown. Our purpose was to investigate the effect of a 100-m simulated in-water rescue on CPR and physiological parameters in trained certified lifeguards. ⋯ Fatigue induced by the 100-m simulated in-water rescue had a strong physiological expression but a minimal impact on CPR performance. Key words: CPR; fatigue; lifeguards; VO2.
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To determine the causes of software misinterpretation of ST elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) compared to clinically identified STEMI to identify opportunities to improve prehospital STEMI identification. ⋯ The leading causes of FP automated interpretation of STEMI were ECG artifact and non-ischemic causes of ST-segment elevation. FN were rare and were related to ST-segment elevation or ST/T ratio that did not meet the software algorithm threshold.