Bystander basic life support and survival after out-of-hospital cardiac arrest: A propensity score matching analysis.

INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVES: In out-of-hospital cardiac arrest, early recognition, calling for emergency medical assistance, and early cardiopulmonary resuscitation are acknowledged to be the three most important components in the chain of survival. However, bystander basic life support (BLS) initiation rates remain low. The objective of the present study was to evaluate the association between bystander BLS and survival after an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA). METHODS: We conducted a retrospective cohort study of all patients with OHCA with a medical etiology treated by a mobile intensive care unit (MICU) in France from July 2011 to September 2021, as recorded in the French National OHCA Registry (RéAC). Cases in which the bystander was an on-duty fire fighter, paramedic, or emergency physician were excluded. We assessed the characteristics of patients who received bystander BLS vs. those who did not. The two classes of patient were then matched 1:1, using a propensity score. Conditional logistic regression was then used to probe the putative association between bystander BLS and survival. RESULTS: During the study, 52,303 patients were included; BLS was provided by a bystander in 29,412 of these cases (56.2%). The 30-day survival rates were 7.6% in the BLS group and 2.5% in the no-BLS group (p < 0.001). After matching, bystander BLS was associated with a greater 30-day survival rate (odds ratio (OR) [95% confidence interval (CI)] = 1.77 [1.58-1.98]). Bystander BLS was also associated with greater short-term survival (alive on hospital admission; OR [95%CI] = 1.29 [1.23-1.36]). CONCLUSIONS: The provision of bystander BLS was associated with a 77% greater likelihood of 30-day survival after OHCA. Given than only one in two OHCA bystanders provides BLS, a greater focus on life saving training for laypeople is essential.

Coronavirus Disease 2019 and Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest: No Survivors.

OBJECTIVES: To describe and compare survival among patients with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest as a function of their status for coronavirus disease 2019. DESIGN: We performed an observational study of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest patients between March 2020 and December 2020. Coronavirus disease 2019 status (confirmed, suspected, or negative) was defined according to the World Health Organization's criteria. SETTING: Information on the patients and their care was extracted from the French national out-of-hospital cardiac arrest registry. The French prehospital emergency medical system has two tiers: the fire department intervenes rapidly to provide basic life support, and mobile ICUs provide advanced life support. The study data (including each patient's coronavirus disease 2019 status) were collected by 95 mobile ICUs throughout France. PATIENTS: We included 6,624 out-of-hospital cardiac arrest patients: 127 cases with confirmed coronavirus disease 2019, 473 with suspected coronavirus disease 2019, and 6,024 negative for coronavirus disease 2019. INTERVENTIONS: None. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: The "confirmed" and "suspected" groups of coronavirus disease 2019 patients had similar characteristics and were more likely to have suffered an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest with a respiratory cause (confirmed: 53.7%, suspected coronavirus disease 2019: 56.5%; p = 0.472) than noncoronavirus disease 2019 patients (14.0%; p < 0.001 vs confirmed coronavirus disease 2019 patients). Advanced life support was initiated for 57.5% of the confirmed coronavirus disease 2019 patients, compared with 64.5% of the suspected coronavirus disease 2019 patients (p = 0.149) and 70.6% of the noncoronavirus disease 2019 ones (p = 0.002). The survival rate at 30-day postout-of-hospital cardiac arrest was 0% in the confirmed coronavirus disease 2019 group, 0.9% in the suspected coronavirus disease 2019 group (p = 0.583 vs confirmed), and 3.5% (p = 0.023) in the noncoronavirus disease 2019 group. CONCLUSIONS: Our results highlighted a zero survival rate in out-of-hospital cardiac arrest patients with confirmed coronavirus disease 2019. This finding raises important questions with regard to the futility of resuscitation for coronavirus disease 2019 patients and the management of the associated risks.

Impact of puberty as threshold to differentiate outcome of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest care groups: a nationwide observational study in France.

BACKGROUND: Since 2005, the international guidelines for out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) use puberty to differentiate paediatric and adult care. This threshold is mainly relied on the more frequent respiratory aetiologies in children. Hitherto, to the best of our knowledge, no study has compared the characteristics and outcomes of non-pubescent children, adolescents and adult patients with OHCA. In this study, we intended to describe the characteristics, outcome and factors associated with survival of patients who experienced OHCA in the three groups: children, adolescents (pubescent<18 years) and adults (<65 years), to assess the pertinence of the guidelines. METHODS: Data from the French national cardiac arrest registry (2012-2017) were used in this nationwide observational study. Victims of OHCA who were <65 years old were included. The characteristics and outcomes of children and adolescents, and adolescents and adults were compared. Logistic regression was performed in each group to identify factors associated with survival at day 30. RESULTS: We included 934 children, 433 adolescents and 26 952 adults. Respiratory aetiology was more frequent and shockable rhythm less frequent in children compared with adolescents (25.5% vs 17.2%, p=0.025 and 2.4% vs 6.8%, p<0.001, respectively). However, these differences were not observed between adolescents and adults (17.2% vs 14.1%, p=0.266 and 6.8% vs 10%, p=0.055, respectively). Between children and adolescents, and adolescents and adults, there was no significant difference in survival at day 30 (8.6%vs 9.8% and 9.8% vs 8.5%, respectively). For all groups, shockable initial rhythm was a factor of survival. CONCLUSION: Frequency of respiratory aetiologies and shockable rhythm were common in adolescents and adults and different between children and adolescents. These results indicate that puberty as a threshold in international guidelines seems to be relevant.

Rationale, development and implementation of the ReACanROC registry for out-of-hospital cardiac arrests in France and Canada.

France and Canada prehospital systems and care delivery in out-of-hospital cardiac arrests (OHCAs) show substantial differences. This article aims to describe the rationale, design, implementation and expected research implications of the international, population-based, France-Canada registry for OHCAs, namely ReACanROC, which is built from the merging of two nation-wide, population-based, Utstein-style prospectively implemented registries for OHCAs attended to by emergency medical services. Under the supervision of an international steering committee and research network, the ReACanROC dataset will be used to run in-depth analyses on the differences in organisational, practical and geographic predictors of survival after OHCA between France and Canada. ReACanROC is the first Europe-North America registry ever created to meet this goal. To date, it covers close to 80 million people over the two countries, and includes approximately 200 000 cases over a 10-year period.

Intraosseous or Peripheral IV Access in Pediatric Cardiac Arrest? Results From the French National Cardiac Arrest Registry.

OBJECTIVES: Despite the evolving recommendations that favor the use of intraosseous access in pediatric resuscitation, the impact of vascular access type on survival in young children has not been demonstrated. The aim of this study was to assess the impact of the intravascular injection route on the return on spontaneous circulation, survival to hospital admission (0 day), and 30 days or survival to hospital discharge, by comparing survival rates in young children having intraosseous and peripheral IV access. The second aim was to compare the rates of favorable neurologic outcome after 30 days or survival to hospital discharge. DESIGN: This was a multicenter retrospective comparative study between July 2011 and October 2018. SETTING: Based on the French cardiac arrest registry data. PATIENTS: All prepubescent (males < 12 yr old, females < 10 yr old) victims of an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. INTERVENTIONS: Patients with adrenaline administration by intraosseous versus peripheral venous technique were compared, using propensity score matching. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: The analysis included 603 prepubescent patients, 351 (58%) in the intraosseous group and 252 (42%) in the peripheral IV group. Intraosseous group patients were younger, lighter, with more medical cause for arrest. The intraosseous group had lower survival rates at 30 days or hospital discharge (n = 6; 1.7%) than the peripheral IV group (n = 12; 4.8%) (p = 0.030). After matching, 101 pairs of patients were created. No difference was observed on return of spontaneous circulation or 0-day survival rates (odds ratio = 1.000 [95% CI, 0.518-1.930]; odds ratio = 0.946 [95% CI, 0.492-1.817], respectively) and on 30 days or hospital discharge survival (n = 3 in both groups) (odds ratio = 1.000 [95% CI, 0.197-5.076]). Meaningful statistical evaluation of neurologic status among survivors was precluded by inadequate numbers. CONCLUSIONS: The type of injection route (intraosseous or peripheral venous access) does not appear to have an impact on survival of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest in a prepubescent population, but limitations of propensity matching limit a definitive conclusion.

Neurological Outcome of Chest Compression-Only Bystander CPR in Asphyxial and Non-Asphyxial Out-Of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest: An Observational Study.

Background: According to guidelines and bystander skill, two different methods of cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) are feasible: standard CPR (S-CPR) with mouth-to-mouth ventilations and chest compression-only CPR (CO-CPR) without rescue breathing. CO-CPR appears to be most effective for cardiac causes, but there is a lack of evidence for asphyxial causes of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA). Thus, the aim of our study was to compare CO-CPR versus S-CPR in adult OHCA from medical etiologies and assess neurologic outcome in asphyxial and non-asphyxial causes.Methods: Using the French National OHCA Registry (RéAC), we performed a multicenter retrospective study over a five-year period (2013 to 2017). All adult-witnessed OHCA who had benefited from either S-CPR or CO-CPR by bystanders were included. Non-medical causes as well as professional rescuers as witnesses were excluded. The primary end point was 30-day neurological outcome in a weighted population for all medical causes, and then for asphyxial, non-asphyxial and cardiac causes.Results: Of the 8 541 subjects included for all medical causes, 6 742 had a non-asphyxial etiology, including 5 904 of cardiac causes, and 1 799 had an asphyxial OHCA. Among all subjects, 8.6%; 95% CI [8.1-9.3] had a good neurological outcome (i.e. cerebral performance category of 1 or 2). Bystanders who performed S-CPR began more often immediately (89.0%; 95% CI [87.3-90.5] versus 78.2%; 95% CI [77.2-79.2]) and in younger subjects (64.1 years versus 65.7; p < 0.001). In the weighted population, subjects receiving bystander-initiated CO-CPR had an adjusted relative risk (aRR) of 1.04; 95% CI [0.79-1.38] of having a good neurological outcome at 30 days for all medical causes, 1.28; 95% CI [0.92-1.77] for asphyxial etiologies, 1.08; 95% CI [0.80-1.46] for non-asphyxial etiologies and 1.09; 95% CI [0.93-1.28] for cardiac-related OHCA.Conclusions: We observed no significant difference in neurological outcome when lay bystanders of adult OHCA initiated CO-CPR or S-CPR, whether the cause was asphyxial or not.

A national population-based study of patients, bystanders and contextual factors associated with resuscitation in witnessed cardiac arrest: insight from the french RéAC registry.

BACKGROUND: In out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA), bystander initiated cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) increases the chance of return of spontaneous circulation and survival with a favourable neurological status. Socioeconomic disparities have been highlighted in OHCA field. In areas with the lowest average socioeconomic status, OHCA incidence increased, and bystander CPR decreased. Evaluations were performed on restricted geographical area, and European evaluation is lacking. We aimed to analyse, at a national level, the impact of area-level social deprivation on the initiation of CPR in case of a witnessed OHCA. METHODS: We included all witnessed OHCA cases with age over 18 years from July 2011 to July 2018 form the OHCA French national registry. We excluded OHCA occurred in front of rescue teams or in nursing home, and patients with incomplete address or partial geocoding. We collected data from context, bystander and patient. The area-level social deprivation was estimated by the French version of the European Deprivation Index (in quintile) associated with the place where OHCA occurred. We assessed the associations between Utstein variables and social deprivation level using a mixed-effect logit model with bystander-initiated CPR. RESULTS: We included 23,979 witnessed OHCA of which 12,299 (51%) had a bystander-initiated CPR. More than one third of the OHCA (8,326 (35%)) occurred in an area from the highest quintile of social deprivation. The higher the area-level deprivation, the less the proportion of bystander-initiated CPR (56% in Quintile 1 versus 48% in Quintile 5). The In the multivariable analysis, bystander less often began CPR in areas with the highest deprivation level, compared to those with the lowest deprivation level (OR=0.69, IC95%: 0.63-0.75). CONCLUSIONS: The level of social deprivation of the area where OHCA occurred was associated with bystander-initiated CPR. It decreased in the more deprived areas although these areas also concentrate more younger patients.

Use of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest registries to assess COVID-19 home mortality.

BACKGROUND: In most countries, the official statistics for the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) take account of in-hospital deaths but not those that occur at home. The study's objective was to introduce a methodology to assess COVID-19 home deaths by analysing the French national out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) registry (RéAC). METHODS: We performed a retrospective multicentre cohort study based on data recorded in the RéAC by 20 mobile medical teams (MMTs) between March 1st and April 15th, 2020. The participating MMTs covered 10.1% of the French population. OHCA patients were classified as probable or confirmed COVID-19 cases or as non-COVID-19 cases. To achieve our primary objective, we computed the incidence and survival at hospital admission of cases of COVID-19 OHCA occurring at home. Cardiac arrests that occurred in retirement homes or public places were excluded. Hence, we estimated the number of at-home COVID-19-related deaths that were not accounted for in the French national statistics. RESULTS: We included 670 patients with OHCA. The extrapolated annual incidence of OHCA per 100,000 inhabitants was 91.9 overall and 17.6 for COVID-19 OHCA occurring at home. In the latter group, the survival rate after being taken to the hospital after an OHCA was 10.9%. We estimated that 1322 deaths were not accounted in the French national statistics on April 15, 2020. CONCLUSIONS: The ratio of COVID-19 out-of-hospital deaths to in-hospital deaths was 12.4%, and so the national statistics underestimated the death rate.

Intraosseous Versus Peripheral Intravenous Access During Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest: a Comparison of 30-Day Survival and Neurological Outcome in the French National Registry.

PURPOSE: To compare intraosseous access with peripheral venous access on adults out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) patients' clinical outcomes. METHODS: A national retrospective multicentre study was conducted based on the French National Cardiac Arrest Registry. Comparison of patients (intraosseous vs. peripheral venous access) was conducted before and after a matching using a propensity score. The propensity score included confounding factors: age, time between the call (T0) to epinephrine (to take account of how quickly vascular access was achieved), the aetiology of OHCA, the shock and the patient initial rhythm at MMT arrival. RESULTS: A total of 1576 patients received intraosseous access, and 27,280 received peripheral intravenous access. Before matching, OHCA patients with intraosseous access were less likely to survive at all stages (return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC), 0-day survival and 30-day survival). No significant difference in neurological outcome was observed. After propensity score matching, no significant differences in 30-day survival rates (OR = 0.763 [0.473;1.231]) and neurological outcome (OR = 1.296 [0.973;1.726]) were observed. However, intraosseous patients still showed lower likelihood of short-term survival (ROSC and 0-day survival) even after propensity score matching was implemented. CONCLUSION: The populations we investigated were similar to those of other studies suggesting that intraosseous access is associated with reduced survival and poorer neurological outcome. Our findings suggest that intraosseous access is a comparably effective alternative to peripheral intravenous access for treating OHCA patients on matched populations.

Maximum Value of End-Tidal Carbon Dioxide Concentrations during Resuscitation as an Indicator of Return of Spontaneous Circulation in out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest.

Background: The end-tidal carbon dioxide (ETCO2) concentration during resuscitation (CPR) of an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) has an increasingly well-known prognostic value. Nevertheless, few studies have investigated its maximum value in different etiologies. Methods: It was a retrospective, observational, multicentre study from the French OHCA Registry. All adult OHCA with a known maximum value of ETCO2 during CPR were included. The primary end-point was to determine the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUROC) of the maximum value of ETCO2 during resuscitation for the return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC). Results: Of the 53,048 eligible subjects from 2011 to 2018, ETCO2 was known in 32,249 subjects (61%). Among them, there were 9.2% of traumatic OHCA, 37.7% of suspected cardiac etiology and 16.4% of suspected respiratory etiology. The AUROC of maximum value of ETCO2 during CPR to achieve ROSC was 0.887 95CI [0.875-0.898] in traumatic OHCA, 0.772 95CI [0.765-0.780] in suspected cardiac etiology and 0.802 95CI [0.791-0.812] in suspected respiratory etiology. The threshold with no survivors at d-30 was <10 mmHg for traumatic etiologies and <6 mmHg for suspected cardiac and respiratory causes. The probability of ROSC increased with the value of ETCO2 in the 3 etiologies studied. Conclusions: The maximum value of ETCO2 during OHCA resuscitation was strongly associated with ROSC, especially in the case of a traumatic cause. This suggests that a single elevated ETCO2 value, regardless of time, could help to predict the outcome.

A Time-Dependent Propensity Score Matching Approach to Assess Epinephrine Use on Patients Survival Within Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest Care.

BACKGROUND: Epinephrine effectiveness and safety are still questioned. It is well known that the effect of epinephrine varies depending on patients' rhythm and time to injection. OBJECTIVE: We aimed to assess the association between epinephrine use during out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) care and patient 30-day (D30) survival. METHODS: Between 2011 and 2017, 27,008 OHCA patients were included from the French OHCA registry. We adjusted populations using a time-dependent propensity score matching. Analyses were stratified according to patient's first rhythm. After matching, 2837 pairs of patients with a shockable rhythm were created and 20,950 with a nonshockable rhythm. RESULTS: Whatever the patient's rhythm (shockable or nonshockable), epinephrine use was associated with less D30 survival (odds ratio [OR] 0.508; 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.440-0.586] and OR 0.645; 95% CI 0.549-0.759, respectively). In shockable rhythms, on all outcomes, epinephrine use was deleterious. In nonshockable rhythms, no difference was observed regarding return of spontaneous circulation and survival at hospital admission. However, epinephrine use was associated with worse neurological prognosis (OR 0.646; 95% CI 0.549-0.759). CONCLUSIONS: In shockable and nonshockable rhythms, epinephrine does not seem to have any benefit on D30 survival. These results underscore the need to perform further studies to define the optimal conditions for using epinephrine in patients with OHCA.

Can We Define Termination Of Resuscitation Criteria In Out-Of-Hospital Hanging?

OBJECTIVE: Survival rate of cardiac arrest due to hanging (H-CA) victims is low. Hence, this leads to the question of the utility of resuscitation in these patients. The objective was to investigate whether there are predictive criteria for survival with a good neurological outcome or predictive criteria for non-survival or survival with a poor neurological outcome enabling us to define the termination of resuscitation rules in these patients. METHODS: Between July 1, 2011 and January 1, 2016, we included 1,689 out-of-hospital cardiac arrests due to hanging. We compared the characteristics of survivors with a good neurological outcome at day 30 with the others. RESULTS: The study population was mainly composed of males with a median age of 48 [37-60]. The overall survival was 2.1%, among which 48.6% had a good neurological outcome. Survivors benefited more often from immediate basic life support than the rest of the subjects, which was corroborated by the shorter no-flow durations. We did not record any difference in terms of advanced cardiac life support initiation frequency and technique between survivors with a good neurological outcome and the rest. Nevertheless, ACLS duration was longer in survivors with a good neurological outcome than in others. CONCLUSIONS: Basic life support (BLS) was the decisive criterion for 15/17 survivors. However, a detailed analysis showed 2 survivors presenting no BLS before the arrival of mobile medical teams and non-shockable rhythms who survived at day 30 with a good neurological outcome. These results lead us to consider that mobile medical team intervention and ACLS attempt are not futile, and the benefit justifies the cost. Thus, we cannot define any rule for the termination of resuscitation.

Evolution of Survival in Cardiac Arrest with Age in Elderly Patients: Is Resuscitation a Dead End?

BACKGROUND: Even if age is not considered the key prognostic factor for survival in cardiac arrest (CA), some studies question whether cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) in the elderly could be futile. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to describe differences in out-of-hospital CA survival rates according to age stratification based on the French National CA registry (RéAC). The second objective was to analyze the differences in resuscitation interventions according to age. METHODS: We performed a retrospective cohort study based on data extracted from the RéAC. All 18,249 elderly patients (>65 years old) with non-traumatic CA recorded between July 2011 and March 2015 were included. Patients' ages were stratified into 5-year increments. RESULTS: Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) was started significantly more often in younger patients (p = 0.019). Ventilation and automated external defibrillation by bystanders were started without any difference between age subgroups (p = 0.147 and p = 0.123, respectively). No difference in terms of rate of external chest compressions or ventilation initiation was found between the subgroups (p = 0.357 and p = 0.131, respectively). Advanced cardiac life support was started significantly more often in younger patients (p = 0.023). Total CPR duration, return of spontaneous circulation, and survival at hospital admission and at 30 days or hospital discharge decreased significantly with age (p < 10-3). The survival decrease was linear, with a loss of 3% survival chances each 5-year interval. CONCLUSIONS: This study found that survival in older persons decreased linearly by 3% every 5 years. However, this diminished rate of survival could be the consequence of a shorter duration and less advanced life support.

Continuous Infusion of Ketamine for Out-of-hospital Isolated Orthopedic Injuries Secondary to Trauma: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

Abstract Objective. Although ketamine has recently been demonstrated to provide a morphine-sparing effect, no previous study reports the effect of continuous infusion of ketamine for analgesia in out-of-hospital environments. The aim of this study was to compare the effect of a continuous infusion of ketamine (IK group) vs. a continuous infusion of saline (IS group) on morphine requirements in out-of-hospital trauma patients suffering from severe acute pain. Methods. In this prospective, multicenter, randomized, single-blind clinical study, patients suffering from isolated orthopedic injuries secondary to trauma with severe acute pain received a low-dose intravenous (IV) bolus of ketamine (0.2 mg·kg-1) combined with an IV bolus of morphine (0.1 mg·kg-1) and were randomized either in the IK group (IV continuous infusion of ketamine 0.2 mg·kg-1·h-1), or in the IS group (IV continuous infusion of saline at the same volume). The primary endpoint was morphine requirements in terms of total dose of morphine (excluding the baseline bolus) injected at the end of prehospital emergency care at hospital admission (final time, Tf). The secondary endpoint was evaluation of pain with visual analogic scale (VAS). Results. Sixty-six patients were enrolled. Total morphine dose was not significantly reduced with continuous infusion of ketamine (0.048 [0.000; 0.150] vs. 0.107 [0.052; 0.150] in IK and IS groups), with similar mean duration of care (median 35.0 min). Analgesia was as efficient without any significant difference in VAS at Tf between groups (3.1 ± 2.3 (IK group) vs. 3.7 ± 2.7 (IS group), p = 0.5). Conclusions. Continuous ketamine infusion did not reduce morphine requirements in severe acute pain trauma patients in the out-of-hospital emergency settings.

Rationale, methodology, implementation, and first results of the French out-of-hospital cardiac arrest registry.

INTRODUCTION: Out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) is an important public health issue with an estimated incidence of 50,000 cases per year in France. Community survival rates for OHCA are still low (approximately 5%). An effective, recognized way to study, assess, and improve OHCA care is to create a standard-format database. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this work is to present the French OHCA registry (RéAC). METHODS: RéAC is a secure, web-based data management system that was initiated in 2009 and deployed nationally in June 2012. The main goal of this registry is to improve the care and survival rate of OHCA patients. The survey form is in compliance with the requirements of French organizations and is organized in accordance with the Utstein universal style. RéAC provides real-time statistical analyses and enables all French mobile emergency and resuscitation services (MERS) to assess and improve their professional OHCA care practices. RESULTS: In June 2012, the RéAC was nationally opened for all French MERSs. In June 2013, 221 of a possible 320 MERS participated in the RéAC. A total of 15,944 OHCA have been collected (14,939 cases closed with follow-up monitoring). The current rate of inclusion is approximately 1,500 cases per month. Since August 2012, the inclusion rate has increased by 9.5% per month, while the participation rate has increased by 9% per month. The first results show that the population is mainly male (65.4%) and the mean age is 65 ± 19 years. On MERS arrival, 73.5% of the patients were in asystole. The rates of return of spontaneous circulation, survival to hospital admission, and 30-day survival are low (respectively 21.1%, 17.2%, 4.6%). Of those who survived 30 days, 84.0% had a good neurological recovery. CONCLUSIONS: The RéAC registry is a reliable observation tool to improve public health management of OHCA. It provides relevant information to adapt or to develop diagnosis, treatments, and prognostic resources. Moreover, it enables the development of targeted awareness programs for the unique purpose of increasing the survival rates of OHCA patients.

Association between cardiopulmonary resuscitation duration and survival after out-of-hospital cardiac arrest according: a first nationwide study in France.

OBJECTIVE: Determining whether to pursue or terminate resuscitation efforts remains one of the biggest challenges of cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). No ideal cut-off duration has been recommended and the association between CPR duration and survival is still unclear for out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA). The aim of this study was to assess the association between CPR duration and 30-day survival after OHCA with favorable neurological outcomes according to initial rhythm. METHODS: This was an observational, retrospective analysis of the French national multicentric registry on cardiac arrest, RéAC. The primary endpoint was neurologically intact 30-day survival according to initial rhythm. RESULTS: 20,628 patients were included. For non-shockable rhythms, the dynamic probability of 30-day survival with a Cerebral Performance Category (CPC) of 1 or 2 was less than 1% after 25 min of CPR. CPR duration over 10 min was not associated with 30-day survival with CPC of 1 or 2 (adjusted OR: 1.67; CI 95% 0.95-2.94). For shockable rhythms, the dynamic probability of 30-day survival with a CPC score of 1 or 2, was less than 1% after 54 min of CPR. CPR duration of 21-25 min was still associated with 30-day survival and 30-day survival with a CPC of 1 or 2 (adjusted OR: 2.77; CI 95% 2.16-3.57 and adjusted OR: 1.82; CI 95% 1.06-3.13, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: Survival decreased rapidly with increasing CPR duration, especially for non-shockable rhythms. Pursuing CPR after 25 min may be futile for patients presenting a non-shockable rhythm. On the other hand, shockable rhythms might benefit from prolonged CPR.

HIV status and lay bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation initiation for witnessed cardiac arrest.

INTRODUCTION: Early initiation of cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) by bystanders of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) significantly improves survival and neurological outcomes. However, misconceptions about human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) transmission risk during CPR can deter lay bystanders from performing resuscitation. The aim of this study was to compare the rate of CPR initiation by lay bystanders who witnessed OHCA in subjects with and without HIV infection. METHODS: We analysed data from the two French cardiac arrest registries (SDEC and RéAC) from 2012 to 2020. We identified HIV-positive individuals from the French National Health Insurance database for the SDEC registry, and directly from the RéAC registry data. We used logistic regression models to assess the association between CPR initiation by lay bystanders and the victim's HIV status. RESULTS: Of 58,177 witnessed OHCA cases, 192 (0.3%) occurred in HIV-positive subjects. These individuals were younger, more often male, and presented more shockable initial rhythms compared with subjects without HIV. Overall, there was no difference in the CPR initiation rate according to the HIV status (57.3% vs 47.6%, adjusted odds ratio 1.11, 95% confidence interval 0.83-1.48). The CPR initiation rate also did not differ by location between victims with or without HIV (home: 57.7% vs 45.4%; public places: 56.0% vs 53.6%; p for interaction = 0.46). Survival and neurological outcomes at hospital discharge did not differ based on the HIV status. CONCLUSIONS: This study revealed that the rate of CPR initiation by lay bystanders did not differ between HIV and non-HIV subjects during OHCA.