Prehospital emergency care : official journal of the National Association of EMS Physicians and the National Association of State EMS Directors
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Effect of short versus long duration naps on blood pressure during simulated night shift work: A randomized crossover trial.
Blunting of the sleep-related dip in blood pressure (BP) has been linked to numerous cardiovascular outcomes including myocardial infarction. Blunting of BP dipping occurs during night shift work and previous research suggest that a 60-min or longer on-shift nap is needed to restore normal/healthy BP dipping. We sought to determine the effect of different durations of napping on BP during and following simulated night shifts. We hypothesized that the greatest benefit in terms of restoration of normal BP dipping during night shift work would be observed during a longer duration nap versus a shorter nap opportunity. ⋯ Restoration of a normal/healthy dip in BP is achievable during short and long duration nap opportunities during simulated night shift work. Our findings support the hypothesis that BP dipping is more common during longer 2-hr versus shorter 30-min naps.
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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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Randomized Controlled Trial
Comparison of four methods of paramedic continuing education in the management of pediatric emergencies.
Introduction: Finite resources limit the amount of time EMS agencies can dedicate to continuing education in pediatric emergencies. EMS instructors need effective, efficient, and affordable educational strategies for these high-risk, low frequency events. Objective: To compare the effectiveness of four training methods in management of pediatric emergencies for paramedics. ⋯ Conclusions: Although improvements in those skills included in the training were found in three groups, two hours of training in pediatric emergencies per year was insufficient to produce a substantial improvement overall. Expensive, high-fidelity simulators were not necessary for teaching pediatric resuscitation skills to paramedics; instructive scenarios using low-fidelity manikins and debriefings appear to be adequate. The content delivered by an online refresher course did not provide any improvement in performance as measured by simulated, case-based assessments.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Intranasal Ketamine as an Adjunct to Fentanyl for the Prehospital Treatment of Acute Traumatic Pain: Design and Rationale of a Randomized Controlled Trial.
Objective: Acute pain management is fundamental in prehospital trauma care. Early pain control may decrease the risk of developing post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and chronic pain. Fentanyl and ketamine are frequently used off-label, but there is a paucity of comparative data to guide decision-making about treatment of prehospital severe, acute pain. ⋯ The outcomes in the follow-up study are satisfaction with life and development of PTSD or chronic pain at 90 days after injury. An intention-to-treat approach will be used. Conclusion: These studies will test the hypotheses that ketamine plus fentanyl, when compared to fentanyl alone, effectively manages pain, decreases opiate requirements, and decreases PTSD at 90 days.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Verbal Motivation vs. Digital Real-Time Feedback During Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation: Comparing Bystander CPR Quality in a Randomized and Controlled Manikin Study of Simulated Cardiac Arrest.
The use of smartphone applications increases bystander CPR quality as well as the use of telephone CPR protocols. The present prospective, randomized, controlled manikin trial analyses the effects of a smartphone application (PocketCPR©) on CPR quality in a bystander CPR scenario compared to a dispatcher-assisted telephone CPR with the additional use of a metronome and verbal motivation. Methods: 150 laypersons were included to perform 8-minute CPR on a manikin. ⋯ Median compression rate in the telephone + app-group was significantly elevated (108 min-1 [IQR 96-119 min-1]) compared to the telephone-group (78 min-1 [IQR 56-106 min-1]; p < 0.001) and the telephone + motivation-group (99 min-1 [IQR 91-101 min-1]; p < 0.001). Conclusions: The use of a smartphone application as well as verbal motivation by a dispatcher during telephone CPR leads to higher CPR quality levels compared to standard telephone CPR. Thereby, the use of the smartphone application mainly shows an increase in compression rate, while increased compression rate with simultaneously increased compression depth was only apparent in the telephone + motivation-group.