Search

Background: The 2010 international guidelines for cardiopulmonary resuscitation recently recommended an increase in the minimum compression depth from 38 to 50 mm, although there are limited human data to support this. We sought to study patterns of cardiopulmonary resuscitation compression depth and their associations with patient outcomes in out-of-hospital cardiac arrest cases treated by the 2005 guideline standards.Design: Prospective cohort.Setting: Seven U.S. and Canadian urban regions.Patients: We studied emergency medical services treated out-of-hospital cardiac arrest patients from the Resuscitation Outcomes Consortium Epistry-Cardiac Arrest for whom electronic cardiopulmonary resuscitation compression depth data were available, from May 2006 to June 2009.Measurements: We calculated anterior chest wall depression in millimeters and the period of active cardiopulmonary resuscitation (chest compression fraction) for each minute of cardiopulmonary resuscitation. We controlled for covariates including compression rate and calculated adjusted odds ratios for any return of spontaneous circulation, 1-day survival, and hospital discharge.Main Results: We included 1029 adult patients from seven U.S. and Canadian cities with the following characteristics: Mean age 68 yrs; male 62%; bystander witnessed 40%; bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation 37%; initial rhythms: Ventricular fibrillation/ventricular tachycardia 24%, pulseless electrical activity 16%, asystole 48%, other nonshockable 12%; outcomes: Return of spontaneous circulation 26%, 1-day survival 18%, discharge 5%. For all patients, median compression rate was 106 per minute, median compression fraction 0.65, and median compression depth 37.3 mm with 52.8% of cases having depth <38 mm and 91.6% having depth <50 mm. We found an inverse association between depth and compression rate ( p < .001). Adjusted odds ratios for all depth measures (mean values, categories, and range) showed strong trends toward better outcomes with increased depth for all three survival measures.Conclusions: We found suboptimal compression depth in half of patients by 2005 guideline standards and almost all by 2010 standards as well as an inverse association between compression depth and rate. We found a strong association between survival outcomes and increased compression depth but no clear evidence to support or refute the 2010 recommendations of >50 mm. Although compression depth is an important component of cardiopulmonary resuscitation and should be measured routinely, the most effective depth is currently unknown. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: The Canadian C-Spine Rule for imaging of the cervical spine was developed for use by physicians. We believe that nurses in the emergency department could use this rule to clinically clear the cervical spine. We prospectively evaluated the accuracy, reliability and acceptability of the Canadian C-Spine Rule when used by nurses.Methods: We conducted this three-year prospective cohort study in six Canadian emergency departments. The study involved adult trauma patients who were alert and whose condition was stable. We provided two hours of training to 191 triage nurses. The nurses then assessed patients using the Canadian C-Spine Rule, including determination of neck tenderness and range of motion, reapplied immobilization and completed a data form.Results: Of the 3633 study patients, 42 (1.2%) had clinically important injuries of the cervical spine. The kappa value for interobserver assessments of 498 patients with the Canadian C-Spine Rule was 0.78. We calculated sensitivity of 100.0% (95% confidence interval [CI] 91.0%-100.0%) and specificity of 43.4% (95% CI 42.0%-45.0%) for the Canadian C-Spine Rule as interpreted by the investigators. The nurses classified patients with a sensitivity of 90.2% (95% CI 76.0%-95.0%) and a specificity of 43.9% (95% CI 42.0%-46.0%). Early in the study, nurses failed to identify four cases of injury, despite the presence of clear high-risk factors. None of these patients suffered sequelae, and after retraining there were no further missed cases. We estimated that for 40.7% of patients, the cervical spine could be cleared clinically by nurses. Nurses reported discomfort in applying the Canadian C-Spine Rule in only 4.8% of cases.Conclusion: Use of the Canadian C-Spine Rule by nurses was accurate, reliable and clinically acceptable. Widespread implementation by nurses throughout Canada and elsewhere would diminish patient discomfort and improve patient flow in overcrowded emergency departments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

OBJECTIVE: There is no consensus on the optimal management of recent-onset episodes of atrial fibrillation or flutter. The approach to these conditions is particularly relevant in the current era of emergency department (ED) overcrowding. We sought to examine the effectiveness and safety of the Ottawa Aggressive Protocol to perform rapid cardioversion and discharge patients with these arrhythmias. METHODS: This cohort study enrolled consecutive patient visits to an adult university hospital ED for recent-onset atrial fibrillation or flutter managed with the Ottawa Aggressive Protocol. The protocol includes intravenous chemical cardioversion, electrical cardioversion if necessary and discharge home from the ED. RESULTS: A total of 660 patient visits were included, 95.2% involving atrial fibrillation and 4.9% involving atrial flutter. The mean age of patients enrolled was 64.5 years. In total, 96.8% were discharged home and, of those, 93.3% were in sinus rhythm. All patients were initially administered intravenous procainamide, with a 58.3% conversion rate. A total of 243 patients underwent subsequent electrical cardioversion with a 91.7% success rate. Adverse events occurred in 7.6% of cases: hypotension 6.7%, bradycardia 0.3% and 7-day relapse 8.6%. There were no cases of torsades de pointes, stroke or death. The median lengths of stay in the ED were as follows: 4.9 hours overall, 3.9 hours for those undergoing conversion with procainamide and 6.5 hours for those requiring electrical conversion. CONCLUSION: This is the largest study to date to evaluate the Ottawa Aggressive Protocol, a unique approach to cardioversion for ED patients with recent-onset episodes of atrial fibrillation and flutter. Our data demonstrate that the Ottawa Aggressive Protocol is effective, safe and rapid, and has the potential to significantly reduce hospital admissions and expedite ED care. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

OBJECTIVE: We derived a clinical decision rule to determine which emergency department (ED) patients with chest pain and possible acute coronary syndrome (ACS) require chest radiography. METHODS: We prospectively enrolled patients over 24 years of age with a primary complaint of chest pain and possible ACS over a 6 month period. Emergency physicians completed standardized clinical assessments and ordered chest radiographs as appropriate. Two blinded investigators independently classified chest radiographs as 'normal,' 'abnormal not requiring intervention' and 'abnormal requiring intervention,' based on review of the radiology report and the medical record. The primary outcome was abnormality of chest radiographs requiring acute intervention. Analyses included interrater reliability assessment (with kappa statistics), univariate analyses and recursive partitioning. RESULTS: We enrolled 529 patients during the study period between Jul. 1, 2007, and Dec. 31, 2007. Patients had a mean age of 59.9 years, 60.3% were male, 4.0% had a history of con gestive heart failure and 21.9% had a history of acute myocardial infarction. Only 2.1% (95% confidence interval [CI] 1.1%-3.8%) of patients had radiographic abnormality of the chest requiring acute intervention. The kappa statistic for chest radiograph classification was 0.81 (95% CI 0.66-0.95). We derived the following rule: patients can forgo chest radiography if they have no history of congestive heart failure, no history of smoking and no abnormalities on lung auscultation. The rule was 100% sensitive (95% CI 32.0%-40.4%) and 36.1% specific (95% CI 32.0%-40.4%). CONCLUSION: This rule has potential to reduce health care costs and enhance ED patient flow. It requires validation in an independent patient population before introduction into clinical practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A mentor is a person who takes a special interest in the professional development of a junior colleague and provides guidance and support. Mentoring can be beneficial for students, residents, junior colleagues and researchers and can be very rewarding for the physician who provides this guidance. Although mentoring is a well recognized topic in academic medicine, relatively little has been written about mentoring in emergency medicine (EM). Consequently, we conducted a literature review on mentoring in EM and present our findings in this paper. We discuss different models of mentoring, factors that foster the development of strong mentor ship programs, the responsibilities of mentors and mentees, and issues specific to mentorship of female, minority and research physicians. We also present several case scenarios as a basis for recommendations for teachers and learners in EM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

OBJECTIVE: The general objective of this study was to explore the challenges of establishing an out of hospital cardiac arrest (OOHCA) surveillance program in Canada. More specifically, we attempted to determine the organizational structure of the delivery of emergency medical services (EMS) in Canada, describe the cardiac arrest data collection infrastructure in each province and determine which OOHCA variables are being collected. METHODS: We conducted a national survey of 82 independent EMS health authorities in Canada. Methodology experts devel oped the survey and distribution using a modified Dillman tech nique. We distributed 67 surveys electronically (84%) and the rest by regular mail. We weighted each survey response by the popu lation of the catchment area represented by the responding health authority (2004 census). Descriptive statistics are reported. RESULTS: We received 60 completed surveys, representing a 73% response rate. The responding health authorities' catchment areas represented 80% of the Canadian population (territories excluded). Our survey results highlight a lack of common OOHCA data definitions used among health authorities, sporadic use of data quality assurance procedures, rare linkages to in hospital survival outcomes and potential confidentiality issues. Other chal lenges raised by respondents included determining warehousing location and finding financial resources for a national OOHCA registry. CONCLUSION: Results from this survey demonstrate that, although it is challenging, it is possible to collect OOHCA data and access in hospital survival outcomes. Collaborative efforts with the Resuscitation Outcomes Consortium and other potential provin cial partners should be explored. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Patients with acute headache often undergo computed tomography (CT) followed by a lumbar puncture to rule out subarachnoid hemorrhage. Our international study examined current practice, the perceived need for a clinical decision rule for acute headache and the required sensitivity for such a rule. Methods: We approached 2100 emergency physicians from 4 countries (Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom and the United States) to participate in our survey by sampling the membership of their emergency associations. We used a modified Dillman technique with 3--5 notifications and a prenotification letter employing a combination of electronic mail and postal mail. Physicians were questioned about neurologically intact patients who presented with headache. Analysis included both descriptive statistics for the entire sample and stratification by country. Results: The total response rate was 54.7% (1149/2100). Respondents were primarily male (75.5%), with a mean age of 42.5 years and a mean 12.3 years of emergency department (ED) experience. Of the physicians who responded, 49.5% thought all acute headache patients should be investigated with CT and 57.4% felt CT should always be followed by lumbar puncture. Of the respondents, 95.7% reported they would consider using a clinical decision rule for patients with acute headache to rule out subarachnoid hemorrhage. Respondents deemed the median sensitivity required by such a rule to be 99% (interquartile range 98%--99%). Approximately 1 in 5 physicians suggested that 100% sensitivity was required. Conclusion: Emergency physicians report that they would welcome a clinical decision rule for headache that would determine which patients require costly or invasive tests to rule out subarachnoid hemorrhage. The required sensitivity of such a rule was realistic. These results will inform and inspire the development of clinical decision rules for acute headache in the ED. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

OBJECTIVE: Information gaps, defined as previously collected information that is not available to the treating physician, have implications for patient safety and system efficiency. For patients transferred to an emergency department (ED) from a nursing home or seniors residence, we determined the frequency and type of clinically important information gaps and the impact of a regional transfer form. METHODS: During a 6-month period, we studied consecutive patients who were identified through the National Ambulatory Care Reporting System database. Patients were over 60 years of age, lived in a nursing home or seniors residence, and arrived by ambulance to a tertiary care ED. We abstracted data from original transfer and ED records using a structured data collection tool. We measured the frequency of prespecified information gaps, which we defined as the failure to communicate information usually required by an emergency physician (EP). We also determined the use of the standardized patient transfer form that is used in Ontario and its impact on the rate of information gaps that occur in our community. RESULTS: We studied 457 transfers for 384 patients. Baseline dementia was present in 34.1% of patients. Important information gaps occurred in 85.5% (95% confidence interval [CI] 82.0%-88.0%) of cases. Specific information gaps along with their relative frequency included the following: the reason for transfer (12.9%), the baseline cognitive function and communication ability (36.5%), vital signs (37.6%), advanced directives (46.4%), medication (20.4%), activities of daily living (53.0%) and mobility (47.7%). A standardized transfer form was used in 42.7% of transfers. When the form was used, information gaps were present in 74.9% of transfers compared with 93.5% of the transfers when the form was not used (p < 0.001). descriptors of the patient's chief complaint were frequently absent (81.0% for head injury [any information about loss of consciousness], 42.4% for abdominal pain and 47.1% for chest pain [any information on location, severity and duration]). CONCLUSION: Information gaps occur commonly when elderly patients are transferred from a nursing home or seniors residence to the ED. A standardized transfer form was associated with a limited reduction in the prevalence of information gaps; even when the form was used, a large percentage of the transfers were missing information. We also determined that the lack of descriptive detail regarding the presenting problem was common. We believe this represents a previously unidentified information gap in the literature about nursing home transfers. Future research should focus on the clinical impact of information gaps. System improvements should focus on educational and regulatory interventions, as well as adjustments to the transfer form. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

INTRODUCTION: Emergency department (ED) physicians face frequent decisions on whether to admit patients with congestive heart failure (CHF) or acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). This feasibility study evaluated the potential of a structured 3-minute walk test as a clinical decision tool for admission and correlated its performance with poor clinical outcomes. It also aimed to gather evidence and directions for the design of a multicentre study to derive clinical guidelines. METHODS: In this prospective cohort study, a convenience sample was enrolled of 40 adult patients who presented to a tertiary care ED with CHF, COPD, or stable chest pain and were being considered for discharge. Patients walked at their own pace and their dyspnoea, respiratory rate, heart rate and oxygen saturation were recorded each minute for 4 minutes. The primary outcome was 'poor clinical outcome' defined as admission to hospital, the need for biphasic positive airway pressure, the need for intubation, relapse, or death. RESULTS: 85.0% successfully completed the test and 30.0% had poor clinical outcomes. Of those with poor clinical outcomes, 41.7% were unable to complete the test compared with only 3.6% of those with good clinical outcomes (p<0.01). Significant differences were noted in the dyspnoea (p = 0.04) and respiratory rate (p = 0.03) as well as oxygen saturation measurements at 3 minutes. CONCLUSIONS: The 3-minute walk test is a non-resource intensive, simple procedure with applicability in most ED for discharge decisions in patients with cardiopulmonary conditions. Multicentre studies are being planned to validate these findings and establish guidelines for admission and discharge of patients with CHF or acute exacerbation of COPD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

OBJECTIVE: A full understanding of an injury event and the mechanical forces involved should be important for predicting specific anatomical patterns of injury. Yet, information on the mechanism of injury is often overlooked as a predictor for specific anatomical injury in clinical decision-making. We measured the relationship between mechanism of injury and risk for cervical spine fracture. METHODS: Our case-control study is a secondary analysis of data collected from the Canadian C-Spine Rule (CCR) study. Data were collected from 1996 to 2002 and included patients presenting to the emergency departments of 9 tertiary care centres after sustaining acute blunt trauma to the head or neck. Cases are defined as patients who were categorized in the CCR study with a clinically important cervical spine fracture. Controls had no radiologic evidence of cervical spine injury. Bivariate and multivariate unconditional logistic regression models were used. Results are presented as odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs). RESULTS: Among the 17,208 patients in the CCR study, 320 (2%)received a diagnosis of a cervical spine fracture. Axial loads, falls, diving incidents and nontraffic motorized vehicle collisions (e.g., collisions involving snowmobiles or all-terrain vehicles) were injury mechanisms that were significantly related to a higher risk of fracture. For motor vehicle collisions, the risk of cervical spine injury increased with the posted speed, being involved in a head-on collision or a rollover, or not wearing a seat belt (p < 0.05). The occurrence of cervical spine fracture was negligible in simple rear-end collisions (1 in 3694 cases; OR 0.015, 95% CI 0.002-0.104]). CONCLUSION: Our study quantitatively demonstrates the relationship between specific mechanisms of injury and the risk of a cervical spine fracture. A full understanding of the injury mechanism would assist providers of emergency health care in assessing risk for injury in trauma patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The primary objective of the trial is to compare survival to hospital discharge with modified Rankin score (MRS) < or =3 between a strategy that prioritizes a specified period of CPR before rhythm analysis (Analyze Later) versus a strategy of minimal CPR followed by early rhythm analysis (Analyze Early) in patients with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest.Methods: Design-Cluster randomized trial with cluster units defined by geographic region, or monitor/defibrillator machine. Population-Adults treated by emergency medical service (EMS) providers for non-traumatic out-of-hospital cardiac arrest not witnessed by EMS. Setting-EMS systems participating in the Resuscitation Outcomes Consortium and agreeing to cluster randomization to the Analyze Later versus Analyze Early intervention in a crossover fashion. Sample size-Based on a two-sided significance level of 0.05, a maximum of 13,239 evaluable patients will allow statistical power of 0.996 to detect a hypothesized improvement in the probability of survival to discharge with MRS < or =3 rate from 5.41% after Analyze Early to 7.45% after Analyze Later (2.04% absolute increase in primary outcome).Conclusion: If this trial demonstrates a significant improvement in survival with a strategy of Analyze Later, it is estimated that 4000 premature deaths from cardiac arrest would be averted annually in North America alone. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

OBJECTIVE: We sought to determine the diagnostic accuracy of clinical prediction rules to exclude acute coronary syndrome (ACS) in the emergency department (ED) setting. METHODS: We searched MEDLINE, EMBASE, Web of Science and the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews. We contacted content experts to identify additional articles for review. Reference lists of included studies were hand searched. We selected articles for review based on the following criteria: 1) enrolled consecutive ED patients; 2) incorporated variables from the history or physical examination, electrocardiogram and cardiac biomarkers; 3) did not incorporate cardiac stress testing or coronary angiography into prediction rule; 4) based on original research; 5) prospectively derived or validated; 6) did not require use of a computer; and 7) reported sufficient data to construct a 2 x 2 contingency table. We assessed study quality and extracted data independently and in duplicate using a standardized data extraction form. RESULTS: Eight studies met inclusion criteria, encompassing 7937 patients. None of the studies verified the prediction rule with a reference standard on all or a random sample of patients. Six studies did not report blinding prediction rule assessors to reference standard results, and vice versa. Three prediction rules were prospectively validated. Sensitivities and specificities ranged from 94% to 100% and 13% to 57%, and positive and negative likelihood ratios from 1.1 to 2.2 and 0.01 to 0.17, respectively. CONCLUSION: Current prediction rules for ACS have substantial methodological limitations and have not been successfully implemented in the clinical setting. Future methodologically sound studies are needed to guide clinical practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: To date, the benefit of prehospital advanced life-support programs on trauma-related mortality and morbidity has not been establishedMethods: The Ontario Prehospital Advanced Life Support (OPALS) Major Trauma Study was a before-after systemwide controlled clinical trial conducted in 17 cities. We enrolled adult patients who had experienced major trauma in a basic life-support phase and a subsequent advanced life-support phase (during which paramedics were able to perform endotracheal intubation and administer fluids and drugs intravenously). The primary outcome was survival to hospital discharge.Results: Among the 2867 patients enrolled in the basic life-support (n = 1373) and advanced life-support (n = 1494) phases, characteristics were similar, including mean age (44.8 v. 47.5 years), frequency of blunt injury (92.0% v. 91.4%), median injury severity score (24 v. 22) and percentage of patients with Glasgow Coma Scale score less than 9 (27.2% v. 22.1%). Survival did not differ overall (81.1% among patients in the advanced life-support phase v. 81.8% among those in the basic life-support phase; p = 0.65). Among patients with Glasgow Coma Scale score less than 9, survival was lower among those in the advanced life-support phase (50.9% v. 60.0%; p = 0.02). The adjusted odds of death for the advanced life-support v. basic life-support phases were nonsignificant (1.2, 95% confidence interval 0.9-1.7; p = 0.16).Interpretation: The OPALS Major Trauma Study showed that systemwide implementation of full advanced life-support programs did not decrease mortality or morbidity for major trauma patients. We also found that during the advanced life-support phase, mortality was greater among patients with Glasgow Coma Scale scores less than 9. We believe that emergency medical services should carefully re-evaluate the indications for and application of prehospital advanced life-support measures for patients who have experienced major trauma. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

OBJECTIVES: One of the first stages in the development of new clinical decision rules (CDRs) is determination of need. This study examined the clinical priorities of emergency physicians (EPs) working in Australasia, Canada, the United Kingdom, and the United States for the development of future CDRs. METHODS: The authors administered an e-mail and postal survey to members of the national emergency medicine (EM) associations in Australasia, Canada, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Results were analyzed via frequency distributions. RESULTS: The total response rate was 54.8% (1,150/2,100). The respondents were primarily male (74%), with a mean age of 42.5 years (SD +/- 8), and a mean of 12 years of experience (SD +/- 7). The top 10 clinical priorities (% selected) were: 1) investigation of febrile child < 36 months (62%); 2) identification of central or serious vertigo (42%); 3) lumbar puncture or admission of febrile child < 3 months (41%); 4) imaging for suspected transient ischemic attack (39%); 5) admission for anterior chest pain (37%); 6) computed tomography (CT) angiography for pulmonary embolus (30%); 7) admission for suicide risk (29%); 8) ultrasound for pain or bleeding in the first trimester of pregnancy (28%); 9) nonspecific weakness in elders (26%); and 10) CT for abdominal pain (25%). Between study countries, there was consistency in identification of clinical problems, but variation in prioritization. CONCLUSIONS: This international survey identified the sampled EPs' priorities for the future development of CDRs. The top priority overall was investigation of the febrile child < 36 months. These results will be valuable to researchers for future development of CDRs in EM that are relevant internationally. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

OBJECTIVES: Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) is a crucial yet weak link in the chain of survival for out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. We sought to understand the determinants of bystander CPR and the factors associated with successful training. METHODS: For this systematic review, we searched 11 electronic databases, 1 trial registry and 9 scientific websites. We performed hand searches and contacted 6 content experts. We reviewed without restriction all communications pertaining to who should learn CPR, what should be taught, when to repeat training, where to give CPR instructions and why people lack the motivation to learn and perform CPR. We used standardized forms to review papers for inclusion, quality and data extraction. We grouped publications by category and classified recommendations using a standardized classification system that was based on level of evidence. RESULTS: We reviewed 2409 articles and selected 411 for complete evaluation. We included 252 of the 411 papers in this systematic review. Differences in their study design precluded a meta-analysis. We classified 22 recommendations; those with the highest scores were 1) 9-1-1 dispatch- assisted CPR instructions, 2) teaching CPR to family members of cardiac patients, 3) Braslow's self-training video, 4) maximizing time spent using manikins and 5) teaching the concepts of ambiguity and diffusion of responsibility. Recommendations not supported by evidence include mass training events, pulse taking prior to CPR by laymen and CPR using chest compressions alone. CONCLUSION: We evaluated and classified the potential impact of interventions that have been proposed to improve bystander CPR rates. Our results may help communities design interventions to improve their bystander CPR rates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background. The authors have demonstrated that 28% of children cared for by paramedics are not transported to hospital by ambulance. Objective. To determine the characteristics, reasons, and outcomes for this nontransported population. Methods. This was a prospective cohort study in a single city with a two-tiered emergency medical services system. Enrolled were all children aged < 16 years assessed by paramedics but not transported to hospital over a five-month period. Data were collected from ambulance call reports, phone interviews, and hospital charts. Descriptive statistics were used. Results. Over five months, there were 345 nontransported pediatric patients with a mean age of 6 years, and 58.3% were male. The dispatch priority was urgent in 68.1% of cases and prompt in 30.4% of cases. The primary problems were almost evenly split between trauma (50.7%) and medical (45.2%) causes. Paramedics listed the following reasons for nontransport: parent will take the child to a physician (27.8%), parent will monitor the child's condition (25.8%), and no reason documented (46.4%). Phone interview was conducted with 106 parents (30.7%): 76.4% believed there was a true emergency at the time of the 9-1-1 call, 75.5% stated that the paramedics did not recommend that the child be transported to hospital by ambulance, and 29.2% stated that the paramedics said ambulance transport was not necessary. Fifty-one children were seen in an emergency department (ED) within 48 hours of the 9-1-1 call. The majority (91.3%) were discharged home from the ED, while a small minority (8.7%) were admitted to hospital. No deaths were reported. Conclusions. Most nontransported children did not require immediate or urgent medical care. Both parents and paramedics gave input into the nontransport decision, and the short-term outcome of this population appeared to be good. Paramedic documentation for the reasons for nontransport should be improved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: There is uncertainty around the types of interventions that are provided by emergency medical services (EMS) to children during prehospital transport. We describe the patient characteristics, events, interventions provided and outcomes of a cohort of children transported by EMS. Methods: This prospective cohort study was conducted in a city of 750 000 people with a 2-tiered EMS system. All children <16 years of age who were attended by EMS during a 6-month period were enrolled. Data were extracted from ambulance call reports and hospital charts, and analyzed using descriptive statistics.Results: During the study period there were 1377 pediatric EMS calls. Mean age was 8.2 years (standard deviation 5.4), and the most common diagnoses were trauma (44.9%), seizure (11.8%) and respiratory distress (8.8%). The ambulance return code was Urgent in 7%, Prompt in 57%, Deferrable in 8% and Not Transported in 28%. Fifty-six percent received either an Advanced Life Support or Basic Life Support prehospital intervention. Common procedures included cardiac monitoring (20.0%), oxygen administration (19.8%), blood glucose monitoring (16.3%), spine board (12.2%), limb immobilization (11.1%) and cervical collar (10.0%). Uncommon procedures included administering medications intravenously (IV) (1.4%), bag-valve-mask ventilation (0.3%) and endotracheal intubation (0.1%). Seventy-eight percent of attempted IV lines were successful. Only 9.0% of EMS-transported children were admitted to hospital, and 2.2% were admitted to the intensive care unit.Conclusions: This first study of Canadian pediatric prehospital interventions shows a high rate of non-transport, and a low rate of Urgent transports and hospital admissions for children. Very few children receive prehospital airway management, ventilation or IV medications; consequently EMS personnel have little opportunity to maintain these pediatric skills in the field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: There is no set of prospectively validated criteria to identify the emergency department (ED) patients with renal colic who are most likely to eventually have to undergo an intervention. This study prospectively assessed predictors of intervention in this patient population.Methods: This prospective cohort study included adult patients with renal colic who presented to 2 tertiary care hospital EDs. Patients had an 18-variable data form completed by an emergency physician and a radiological study to confirm urolithiasis. After discharge, patients were followed at 1 and 4 weeks to assess for intervention. The outcome criteria included the patient having had at least 1 of the following procedures performed: extracorporeal shockwave lithotripsy (ESWL), ureteroscopy, percutaneous nephrostomy or open surgery. Data were analyzed using appropriate univariate techniques, and those variables associated with intervention were combined using logistic regression analysis.Results: Over an 8-month period, 245 patients with confirmed urolithiasis were followed; 20% (95% confidence interval [CI] 15%-25%) eventually had a procedure to remove their calculi. Three variables were significantly correlated with having a procedure: i) size of calculus >/= 6 mm (odds ratio [OR] 10.7, 95% CI 4.6-24.8), ii) location of calculus above mid-ureter (OR 6.9, 95% CI 3.0-15.9), and iii) Visual Analogue Scale score for pain at discharge from the ED >/= 2 cm (OR 2.6, 95% CI 1.0-6.8). The area under receiver operating characteristic curve was 0.77 (95% C I 0.70-0.84) (p < 0.001). If all variables were present there was a 90% probability of the patient having an intervention performed within 4 weeks of discharge from the ED. Conversely, if none of the variables were present there was only a 4% probability of an intervention. Overall, the model had a sensitivity of 92% (95% CI 89%-96%) and a specificity of 63% (95% CI 57%-69%).Conclusions: This study has identified variables that could potentially be used to identify those renal colic patients who require an intervention after ED evaluation. Future studies will prospectively validate this model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The available evidence supporting the use of arthroscopic débridement for the treatment of symptomatic osteoarthritis of the knee is largely retrospective and lacks validated health-related quality-of-life measures. The goal of the study was to prospectively assess a cohort of patients with osteoarthritis of the knee who were selected for arthroscopic débridement and determine which clinical criteria favor a sustained improvement in health-related quality of life after two years of follow-up.Methods: One hundred and twenty-six patients with symptomatic primary osteoarthritis of the knee underwent arthroscopic débridement of the knee after failure of medical management. Two groups of surgeons (postgraduate fellows and attending staff) independently evaluated the patients preoperatively with use of a standardized assessment of clinical symptoms and signs and plain radiography. The intervention was arthroscopic débridement, which included resection of unstable chondral flaps and meniscal tears. Abrasion was not performed. Outcome measures included the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC), a disease-specific scale, and the Short Form-36 (SF-36), a generic outcome measure.Results: Sixty-seven (53%) of the 126 patients were female, and the mean age (and standard deviation) was 61.7 +/- 8.6 years (range, forty-three to seventy-five years). The medial compartment was more frequently and severely involved, with 57% showing Grade-III or IV involvement, according to the system of Dougados et al. Seventy-nine patients (63%) had an unstable meniscal tear. Fifty-six patients (44%) were rated as having had a clinically important reduction in pain, as determined with the WOMAC pain scale, at two years after the arthroscopic débridement. Physicians were poor at predicting which patients would have improvement. The rate of accuracy of the fellows and staff was 54% and 59%, respectively, and their agreement was only slightly better than chance, with a kappa of 0.27 (95% confidence interval, 0.09 to 0.45). Only three variables were significantly associated with improvement: the presence of medial joint-line tenderness (p = 0.04), a positive Steinman test (p = 0.01), and the presence of an unstable meniscal tear at arthroscopy (p = 0.01).Conclusions: The prospectively evaluated quality-of-life benefit from arthroscopic débridement of the osteoarthritic knee is less than that reported in previous retrospective surveys on satisfaction. These results may serve as a baseline for comparison against more sophisticated procedures for resurfacing of the articular cartilage. Clinical variables were only partially helpful for predicting a successful result after arthroscopic débridement, and a search for other biologic markers (such as synovial fluid) may be of benefit.Level Of Evidence: Therapeutic study, Level IV (case series [no, or historical, control group]). See p. 2 for complete description of levels of evidence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Clinical experience provides clinicians with an intuitive sense of which findings on history, physical examination, and investigation are critical in making an accurate diagnosis, or an accurate assessment of a patient's fate. A clinical decision rule (CDR) is a clinical tool that quantifies the individual contributions that various components of the history, physical examination, and basic laboratory results make toward the diagnosis, prognosis, or likely response to treatment in a patient. Clinical decision rules attempt to formally test, simplify, and increase the accuracy of clinicians' diagnostic and prognostic assessments. Existing CDRs guide clinicians, establish pretest probability, provide screening tests for common problems, and estimate risk. Three steps are involved in the development and testing of a CDR: creation of the rule, testing or validating the rule, and assessing the impact of the rule on clinical behavior. Clinicians evaluating CDRs for possible clinical use should assess the following components: the method of derivation; the validation of the CDR to ensure that its repeated use leads to the same results; and its predictive power. We consider CDRs that have been validated in a new clinical setting to be level 1 CDRs and most appropriate for implementation. Level 1 CDRs have the potential to inform clinical judgment, to change clinical behavior, and to reduce unnecessary costs, while maintaining quality of care and patient satisfaction. JAMA. 2000;284:79-84 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Context: Survival rates for out-of-hospital cardiac arrest are low; published survival rates in Ontario are only 2.5%. This study represents phase II of the Ontario Prehospital Advanced Life Support (OPALS) study, which is designed to systematically evaluate the effectiveness and efficiency of various prehospital interventions for patients with cardiac arrest, trauma, and critical illnesses.Objective: To assess the impact on out-of-hospital cardiac arrest survival of the implementation of a rapid defibrillation program in a large multicenter emergency medical services (EMS) system with existing basic life support and defibrillation (BLS-D) level of care.Design: Controlled clinical trial comparing survival for 36 months before (phase I) and 12 months after (phase II) system optimization.Setting: Nineteen urban and suburban Ontario communities (populations ranging from 16 000 to 750 000 [total, 2.7 million]).Patients: All patients who had out-of-hospital cardiac arrest in the study communities for whom resuscitation was attempted by emergency responders.Interventions: Study communities optimized their EMS systems to achieve the target response interval from when a call was received until a vehicle stopped with a defibrillator of 8 minutes or less for 90% of cardiac arrest cases. Working both locally and provincially, communities implemented multiple measures, including defibrillation by firefighters, base paging, tiered response agreements with fire departments, continuous quality improvement for response intervals, and province-wide revision and implementation of standard dispatch policies. All response times were obtained from a central dispatch system.Main Outcome Measure: Survival to hospital discharge.Results: The 4690 cardiac arrest patients studied in phase I and the 1641 in phase II were similar for all clinical and demographic characteristics, including age, sex, witnessed status, rhythm, and receipt of bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation. The proportion of cases meeting the 8-minute response criterion improved (76.7% vs 92.5%; P<.001) as did most median response intervals. Overall survival to hospital discharge for all rhythm groups combined improved from 3.9% to 5.2 % (P = .03). The 33% relative increase in survival represents an additional 21 lives saved each year in the study communities (approximately 1 life per 120000 residents). The charges were estimated to be US $46900 per life saved for establishing the rapid defibrillation program and US $2400 per life saved annually for maintaining the program.Conclusion: An inexpensive, multifaceted system optimization approach to rapid defibrillation can lead to significant improvements in survival after cardiac arrest in a large BLS-D EMS system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To compare the impact of active compression-decompression (ACD) cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and standard CPR on the outcomes of in-hospital and prehospital victims of cardiac arrest.Design: Randomized controlled trial with blinding of allocation using a sealed container.Settings: (1) Emergency departments, wards, and intensive care units of 5 university hospitals and (2) all locations outside hospitals in 2 midsized cities.Patients: A total of 1784 adults who had cardiac arrest.Intervention: Patients received either standard or ACD CPR throughout resuscitation.Main Outcome Measures: Survival for 1 hour and to hospital discharge and the modified Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE).Results: All characteristics were similar in the standard and ACD CPR groups for the 773 in-hospital patients and the 1011 prehospital patients. For in-hospital patients, there were no significant differences between the standard (n = 368) and ACD (n = 405) CPR groups in survival for 1 hour (35.1% vs 34.6%; P = .89), in survival until hospital discharge (11.4% vs 10.4%; P = .64), or in the median MMSE score of survivors (37 in both groups). For patients who collapsed outside the hospital, there were also no significant differences between the standard (n = 510) and ACD (n = 501) CPR groups in survival for 1 hour (16.5% vs 18.2%; P = .48), in survival to hospital discharge (3.7% vs 4.6%; P = .49), or in the median MMSE score of survivors (35 in both groups). Exploration of clinically important subgroups failed to identify any patients who appeared to benefit from ACD CPR.Conclusions: ACD CPR did not improve survival or neurologic outcomes in any group of patients with cardiac arrest. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ankle trauma is common in active patients, most of whom are eager to return, as soon as possible, to their prior level of function. You can accomplish this with a good history and exam--and usually without overusing x-rays. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Clinical prediction rules are decision-making tools for clinicians, containing variables from the history, physical examination, or simple diagnostic tests.Objective: To review the quality of recently published clinical prediction rules and to suggest methodological standards for their development and evaluation.Data Sources: Four general medical journals were manually searched for clinical prediction rules published from 1991 through 1994.Study Selection: Four hundred sixty potentially eligible reports were identified, of which 30 were clinical prediction rules eligible for study. Most methodological standards could only be evaluated in 29 studies.Data Abstraction: Two investigators independently evaluated the quality of each report using a standard data sheet. Disagreements were resolved by consensus.Data Synthesis: The mathematical technique was used to develop the rule, and the results of the rule were described in 100% (29/29) of the reports. All the rules but 1 (97% [28/29]) were felt to be clinically sensible. The outcomes and predictive variables were clearly defined in 83% (24/29) and 59% (17/29) of the reports, respectively. Blind assessment of outcomes and predictive variables occurred in 41% (12/29) and 79% (23/29) of the reports, respectively, and the rules were prospectively validated in 79% (11/14). Reproducibility of predictive variables was assessed in only 3% (1/29) of the reports, and the effect of the rule on clinical use was prospectively measured in only 3% (1/30). Forty-one percent (12/29) of the rules were felt to be easy to use.Conclusions: Although clinical prediction rules comply with some methodological criteria, for other criteria, better compliance is needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

STUDY OBJECTIVE: Evaluation of emergency department (ED) patients with chest pain who are at low risk for acute coronary syndrome is resource intensive and may lead to false-positive test results and unnecessary downstream procedures. We seek to identify patients at low short-term risk for a cardiac event for whom additional ED investigations might be unnecessary. METHODS: We prospectively enrolled patients older than 24 years and with a primary complaint of chest pain from 3 academic EDs. Physicians completed standardized data collection forms before diagnostic testing. The primary adjudicated outcome was acute myocardial infarction, revascularization, or death of cardiac or unknown cause within 30 days. We used recursive partitioning to derive the rule and validated the model with 5,000 bootstrap replications. RESULTS: Of 2,718 patients enrolled, 336 (12%) experienced a cardiac event within 30 days (6% acute myocardial infarction, 10% revascularization, 0.2% death). We developed a rule consisting of the absence of 5 predictors: ischemic ECG changes not known to be old, history of coronary artery disease, pain typical for acute coronary syndrome, initial or 6-hour troponin level greater than the 99th percentile, and age greater than 50 years. Patients aged 40 years or younger required only a single troponin evaluation. The rule was 100% sensitive (95% confidence interval 97.2% to 100.0%) and 20.9% specific (95% confidence interval 16.9% to 24.9%) for a cardiac event within 30 days. CONCLUSION: This clinical prediction rule identifies ED chest pain patients at very low risk for a cardiac event who may be suitable for discharge. A prospective multicenter study is needed to validate the rule and determine its effect on practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]