Prehospital emergency care : official journal of the National Association of EMS Physicians and the National Association of State EMS Directors
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Objective: Hemostatic gauze application is an effective way to control major bleeding, which is the most common cause of death in trauma in both civilian and military settings. Coagulation derangement after acute exposure to high altitude might alter the effects of hemostatic gauzes. The present study aimed to observe the hemostatic effects of bio-zeolite gauze (BZG) and QuikClot Combat Gauze® (QCG) on major bleeding in rabbits acutely exposed to high altitude. ⋯ The concentrations of coagulation factor XII and factor X in rabbits acutely exposed to high altitude were significantly lower than those in lower altitude. At high altitude, the hemostatic effects of BZG did not decrease significantly compared to those in the lower altitude, whereas those of ordinary gauze and QCG decreased significantly at high altitude compared to those in the lower altitude. Conclusions: Coagulation derangement after acute exposure to high altitude has negative effects on ordinary gauze and QCG but has no significant negative hemostatic effects on BZG.
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The MARCH (Massive hemorrhage, Airway, Respirations, Circulation, and Hypothermia/Head injuries) algorithm taught to military medics includes interventions to prevent hypothermia. As possible sequelae from major trauma, hypothermia is associated with coagulopathy and lower survival. This paper sought to define hypothermia within our combat trauma population using an outcomes-based method, and determine clinical variables associated with hypothermia. ⋯ Hypothermia, including a single recorded low temperature in the patient care record, was associated with worse outcomes in this combat trauma population. Prehospital intubation was most strongly associated with developing hypothermia. Prehospital warming interventions were not associated with a reduction in hypothermia risk. Our dataset suggests that current methods for prehospital warming are inadequate.
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Recent clinical trials have failed to identify a benefit of antiarrhythmic administration during cardiac arrest. However, little is known regarding the time to administration of antiarrhythmic drugs in clinical practice or its impact on return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC). We utilized a national EMS registry to evaluate the time of drug administration and association with ROSC. ⋯ Time to administration of anti-arrhythmic medication varied, but most patients received the first dose of anti-arrhythmic drug more than 19 minutes after the initial 9-1-1 call. Longer time to administration of an antiarrhythmic in patients with an initial shockable rhythm was associated with decreased ROSC rates.
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Objectives: The aim of this work is to describe routine integration of prehospital emergency health records into a health master linkage file, delivering ongoing access to integrated patient treatment and outcome information for ambulance-attended patients in Queensland. Methods: The Queensland Ambulance Service (QAS) data are integrated monthly into the Queensland Health Master Linkage File (MLF) using a linkage algorithm that relies on probabilistic matches in combination with deterministic rules based on patient demographic details, date, time and facility identifiers. Each ambulance record is assigned an enduring linkage key (unique patient identifier) and further processing determines whether each record matches with a corresponding hospital emergency department, admission or death registry record. ⋯ Of ambulance non-transport records integrated into the MLF, 23.6% (n = 74,311) matched with ED records. Conclusion: This study demonstrates robust linkage methods, quality assurance processes and high linkage rates of data across the continuum of care (prehospital/emergency department/admitted patient/death) in Queensland. The resulting infrastructure provides a high-quality linked dataset that facilitates complex research and analysis to inform critical functions such as quality improvement, system evaluation and design.
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To describe and compare characteristics of ambulance attendances for older adults with and without dementia. ⋯ Dementia is common amongst older adults attended by paramedics and is associated with higher ambulance utilization per person. People with dementia attended by paramedics have stronger signals of vulnerability, such as increased frailty. As the number of people living with dementia increases in the future, there are implications for workforce training and service planning. There are opportunities for developing alternatives to emergency department transportation for some people with dementia.