Do preterm bones still break? Incidence of rib fracture and osteopenia of prematurity in very low birth weight infants.

AIM: Extremely premature babies are at risk of osteopenia of prematurity (OOP) as bone mineralisation in utero increases exponentially after 24 weeks gestation. Our aim was to assess the bone health of very low birth weight (VLBW) infants. We wanted to establish the incidences of OOP and rib fracture. We also looked at which biochemical markers best predicted OOP. Bone health in this vulnerable population is an important aspect of management which should not be overlooked. METHODS: This was an observational study which included all VLBW infants, born in a national maternity hospital, over a 5-year period. All X-rays performed on these infants were reviewed. Data were also collected on biochemical markers associated with bone health. The medical records of infants with rib fractures were reviewed looking for causes of bone fragility. RESULTS: Of the 609 VLBW infants included in the study, only two cases of definitive rib fractures were found. This represents a rib fracture incidence of 3 per 1000. Thirty-nine percent of VLBW babies showed radiological evidence suggestive of OOP. CONCLUSION: Our findings show a lower rate of rib fracture in preterm infants compared to previous evidence. We also showed that these fractures were not evident on the final X-ray prior to discharge. This implies that when an ex-preterm infant presents to the emergency department with a rib fracture there should be an even higher suspicion for non-accidental injury than previously thought.

Community Initiatives to Promote Basic Life Support Implementation-A Scoping Review.

INTRODUCTION: Early intervention of bystanders (the first links of the chain of survival) have been shown to improve survival and good neurological outcomes of patients suffering out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA). Many initiatives have been implemented to increase the engagement of communities in early basic life support (BLS) and cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), especially of lay people with no duty to respond. A better knowledge of the most effective initiatives might help improve survival and health system organization. Aim of the scoping review: To assess the impact of specific interventions involving lay communities on bystander BLS rates and other consistent clinical outcomes, and to identify relevant knowledge gaps. METHODS: This scoping review was part of the continuous evidence evaluation process of the International Liaison Committee on Resuscitation (ILCOR), and was performed following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews. We performed a literature search using the PubMed, EMBASE, and Cochrane databases until 1 February 2021. The screening process was conducted based on predefined inclusion/exclusion criteria, and for each included study, we performed data extraction focusing on the type of intervention implemented, and the impact of these interventions on the specific OHCAs outcomes. RESULTS: Our search strategy identified 19 eligible studies, originating mainly from the USA (47.4%) and Denmark (21%). The type of intervention included in 57.9% of cases was a community CPR training program, in 36.8% bundled interventions, and in 5.3% mass-media campaigns. The most commonly reported outcome for OHCAs was bystander CPR rate (94.7%), followed by survival to hospital discharge (36.8%), proportion of people trained (31.6%), survival to hospital discharge with good neurological outcome (21%), and Return of Spontaneous Circulation (10.5%). Community training programs and bundled interventions improved bystander CPR in most of the included studies. CONCLUSION: Based on the results of our scoping review, we identified the potential benefit of community initiatives, such as community training in BLS, even as part of bundled intervention, in order to improve bystander CPR rates and patient outcomes.

Education, Implementation, and Teams: 2020 International Consensus on Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation and Emergency Cardiovascular Care Science With Treatment Recommendations.

For this 2020 International Consensus on Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation and Emergency Cardiovascular Care Science With Treatment Recommendations, the Education, Implementation, and Teams Task Force applied the population, intervention, comparator, outcome, study design, time frame format and performed 15 systematic reviews, applying the Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development, and Evaluation guidance. Furthermore, 4 scoping reviews and 7 evidence updates assessed any new evidence to determine if a change in any existing treatment recommendation was required. The topics covered included training for the treatment of opioid overdose; basic life support, including automated external defibrillator training; measuring implementation and performance in communities, and cardiac arrest centers; advanced life support training, including team and leadership training and rapid response teams; measuring cardiopulmonary resuscitation performance, feedback devices, and debriefing; and the use of social media to improve cardiopulmonary resuscitation application.