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Improved survival after an out‐of‐hospital cardiac arrest using new guidelines
Author(s) -
STEINMETZ J.,
BARNUNG S.,
NIELSEN S. L.,
RISOM M.,
RASMUSSEN L. S.
Publication year - 2008
Publication title -
acta anaesthesiologica scandinavica
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.738
H-Index - 107
eISSN - 1399-6576
pISSN - 0001-5172
DOI - 10.1111/j.1399-6576.2008.01657.x
Subject(s) - medicine , intensive care medicine , emergency medicine
Background: An out‐of‐hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) is associated with a poor prognosis. We hypothesized that the implementations of 2005 European Resuscitation Council resuscitation guidelines were associated with improved 30‐day survival after OHCA. Methods: We prospectively recorded data on all patients with OHCA treated by the Mobile Emergency Care Unit of Copenhagen in two periods: 1 June 2004 until 31 August 2005 (before implementation) and 1 January 2006 until 31 March 2007 (after implementation), separated by a 4‐month period in which the above‐mentioned change took place. Results: We found that 30‐day survival increased after the implementation from 31/372 (8.3%) to 67/419 (16%), P =0.001. ROSC at hospital admission, as well as survival to hospital discharge, were obtained in a significantly higher proportion from 23.4% to 39.1%, P <0.0001, and from 7.9% to 16.3%, P =0.0004, respectively. Treatment after implementation was confirmed as a significant predictor of better 30‐day survival in a logistic regression analysis. Conclusion: The implementation of new resuscitation guidelines was associated with improved 30‐day survival after OHCA.