Prognostic Effect of Underlying Chronic Kidney Disease and Renal Replacement Therapy on the Outcome of Patients after Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest: A Nationwide Observational Study.

Background and Objectives: This study assessed the prognostic value of underlying chronic kidney disease (CKD) and renal replacement therapy (RRT) on the clinical outcomes from out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA). Materials and Methods: This retrospective study was conducted utilizing the population-based OHCA data of South Korea between 2008 and 2018. Adult (>18 years) OHCA patients with a medical cause of cardiac arrest were included and classified into three categories based on the underlying CKD and RRT: (1) non-CKD group; (2) CKD without RRT group; and (3) CKD with RRT group. A total of 13,682 eligible patients were included (non-CKD, 9863; CKD without RRT, 1778; CKD with RRT, 2041). From the three comparison subgroups, data with propensity score matching were extracted. The influence of CKD and RRT on patient outcomes was assessed using propensity score matching and multivariate logistic regression analyses. The primary outcome was survival at hospital discharge and the secondary outcome was a good neurological outcome at hospital discharge. Results: The two CKD groups (CKD without RRT and CKD with RRT) showed no significant difference in survival at hospital discharge compared with the non-CKD group (CKD without RRT vs. non-CKD, p > 0.05; CKD with RRT vs. non-CKD, p > 0.05). The non-CKD group had a higher chance of having good neurological outcomes than the CKD groups (non-CKD vs. CKD without RRT, p < 0.05; non-CKD vs. CKD with RRT, p < 0.05) whereas there was no significant difference between the two CKD groups (CKD without RRT vs. CKD with RRT, p > 0.05). Conclusions: Compared with patients without CKD, the underlying cause of CKD­regardless of RRT­may be linked to poor neurological outcomes. Underlying CKD and RRT had no effect on the survival at hospital discharge.

Prognostic Impact of In-Hospital Use of Mechanical Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation Devices Compared with Manual Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation: A Nationwide Population-Based Observational Study in South Korea.

Background and Objectives: This study analyzed the prognostic impact of mechanical cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) devices in out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) patients, in comparison to manual CPR. Materials and Methods: This study was a nationwide population-based observational study in South Korea. Data were retrospectively collected from 142,905 OHCA patients using the South Korean Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest Surveillance database. We included adult OHCA patients who received manual or mechanical CPR in the emergency room. The primary outcome was survival at discharge and the secondary outcome was sustained return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC). Statistical analysis included propensity score matching and multivariate logistic regression. Results: A total of 19,045 manual CPR and 1125 mechanical CPR cases (671 AutoPulseTM vs. 305 ThumperTM vs. 149 LUCASTM) were included. In the matched multivariate analyses, all mechanical CPR devices were associated with a lower ROSC than that of manual CPR. AutoPulseTM was associated with lower survival in the multivariate analysis after matching (aOR with 95% CI: 0.57 (0.33-0.96)), but the other mechanical CPR devices were associated with similar survival to discharge as that of manual CPR. Witnessed arrest was commonly associated with high ROSC, but the use of mechanical CPR devices and cardiac origin arrest were associated with low ROSC. Only target temperature management was the common predictor for high survival. Conclusions: The mechanical CPR devices largely led to similar survival to discharge as that of manual CPR in OHCA patients; however, the in-hospital use of the AutoPulseTM device for mechanical CPR may significantly lower survival compared to manual CPR.

Muscle Mass Depletion Associated with Poor Outcome of Sepsis in the Emergency Department.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Muscle mass depletion has been suggested to predict morbidity and mortality in various diseases. However, it is not well known whether muscle mass depletion is associated with poor outcome in sepsis. We hypothesized that muscle mass depletion is associated with poor outcome in sepsis. METHODS: Retrospective observational study was conducted in an emergency department during a 9-year period. Medical records of 627 patients with sepsis were reviewed. We divided the patients into 2 groups according to 28-day mortality and compared the presence of muscle mass depletion assessed by the cross-sectional area of the psoas muscle at the level of the third lumbar vertebra on abdomen CT scans. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were conducted to examine the association of scarcopenia on the outcome of sepsis. RESULTS: A total of 274 patients with sepsis were finally included in the study: 45 (16.4%) did not survive on 28 days and 77 patients (28.1%) were identified as having muscle mass depletion. The presence of muscle mass depletion was independently associated with 28-day mortality on multivariate logistic analysis (OR 2.79; 95% CI 1.35-5.74, p = 0.01). CONCLUSIONS: Muscle mass depletion evaluated by CT scan was associated with poor outcome of sepsis patients. Further studies on the appropriateness of specific treatment for muscle mass depletion with sepsis are needed.

Pulmonary thromboembolism after carbon monoxide poisoning.

OBJECTIVE: Carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning is known to increase thrombotic tendency, and the risk of deep vein thrombosis in individuals who have experienced CO poisoning is higher than in the general population. However, there are a few reports describing cases of pulmonary thromboembolisms (PTE) secondary to CO poisoning. DATA SOURCES: Retrospective data analysis. STUDY SELECTION: Seven hundred fifty bed tertiary university affiliated hospital. DATA EXTRACTION AND SYNTHESIS: Five patients with PTE after CO poisoning were observed. Two patients experienced cardiac arrest; they were treated successfully with tissue plasminogen activators and targeted temperature management. Their cerebral performance scores at discharge were both 1. Three patients had PTE and were treated with anticoagulation. CONCLUSIONS: To date, the causal relationship between PTE and CO poisoning is unclear. However, PTE should be considered in patients with CO poisoning as a differential diagnosis when unexplained hypoxemia or shock are observed. Further studies on the association between CO poisoning and PTE are warranted.

A Feasibility Study of Telementoring for Identifying the Appendix Using Smartphone-Based Telesonography.

We investigated the feasibility of the clinical application of novice-practitioner-performed/offsite-mentor-guided ultrasonography for identifying the appendix. A randomized crossover study was conducted using a telesonography system that can transmit the ultrasound images displayed on the ultrasound monitor (ultrasound sequence video) and images showing the practitioner's operations (background video) to a smartphone without any interruption in motion over a Long-Term Evolution (LTE) network. Thirty novice practitioners were randomly assigned to two groups. The subjects in group A (n = 15) performed ultrasonography for the identification of the appendix under mentoring by an onsite expert, whereas those in group B (n = 15) performed the same procedure under mentoring by an offsite expert. Each subject performed the procedure on three simulated patients. After a 4-week interval, they performed the procedure again under the other type of mentoring. A total of 90 ultrasound examinations were performed in each scenario. The primary outcomes were the success rate for identifying the appendix and the time required to identify the appendix. The success rates for identifying the appendix were 91.1 % (82/90) in onsite-mentored ultrasonography and 87.8 % (79/90) in offsite-mentored ultrasonography; both rates were high, and there was no significant difference (p = 0.468) between them. The time required in the case of offsite mentoring (median, 242.9 s; interquartile range (IQR), 238.2) was longer than that for onsite mentoring (median, 291.4 s; IQR, 200.9); however, the difference was not significant (p = 0.051). It appears that offsite mentoring can allow novice onsite practitioners to perform ultrasonography as effectively as they can under onsite mentoring, even for examinations that require proficiency in rather complex practices, such as identifying the appendix.

Target Temperature Management Effect on the Clinical Outcome of Patients with Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest Treated with Extracorporeal Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation: A Nationwide Observational Study.

This study aimed to investigate whether targeted temperature management (TTM) could enhance outcomes in patients with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) treated with extracorporeal cardiopulmonary resuscitation (ECPR) for refractory cardiac arrest. Using a nationwide OHCA registry, adult patients with witnessed OHCA of presumed cardiac origin who underwent ECPR at the emergency department between 2008 and 2021 were included. We examined the effect of ECPR with TTM on survival and neurological outcomes at hospital discharge using propensity score matching and multivariable logistic regression compared with patients treated with ECPR without TTM. Odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals were determined. A total of 399 ECPR cases were analyzed among 380,239 patients with OHCA. Of these, 330 underwent ECPR without TTM and 69 with TTM. After propensity score matching, 69 matched pairs of patients were included in the analysis. No significant differences in survival and good neurological outcomes between the two groups were observed. In the multivariable logistic regression, no significant differences were observed in survival and neurological outcomes between ECPR with and without TTM. Among the patients who underwent ECPR after OHCA, ECPR with TTM did not improve outcomes compared with ECPR without TTM.

Prognostic Association between Injury Severity Score and the Outcomes of Elderly Patients with Trauma in South Korea.

This study investigated the impact of the Injury Severity Score (ISS) on treatment approaches and survival outcomes in trauma patients, focusing on comparing elderly (≥65 years) with non-elderly patients. It analyzed adult trauma cases with abnormal Revised Trauma Scores from January to December 2019, categorizing patients into three severity groups based on ISS: mild (1-8), moderate (9-15), and severe (≥16). The study examined how ISS influenced therapeutic interventions and survival among elderly patients, comparing these outcomes to non-elderly patients using multivariable logistic regression analysis. In 16,336 adult trauma cases out of 52,262 patients, including 4886 elderly and 11,450 non-elderly patients, findings revealed that in the severe group, elderly patients had a lower, though not statistically significant, incidence of surgical or embolization interventions compared to the moderate group, differing from non-elderly patients. No significant differences were observed in the mild group between elderly and non-elderly patients. However, elderly patients had higher intervention rates in the moderate group and lower in the severe group, with significantly lower survival-to-discharge rates in the severe group. The ISS is insufficient for assessing trauma severity in elderly patients. Additional tools are needed for better evaluation and treatment decisions.

Comparison of the Diagnostic Performance of Deep Learning Algorithms for Reducing the Time Required for COVID-19 RT-PCR Testing.

(1) Background: Rapid and accurate negative discrimination enables efficient management of scarce isolated bed resources and adequate patient accommodation in the majority of areas experiencing an explosion of confirmed cases due to Omicron mutations. Until now, methods for artificial intelligence or deep learning to replace time-consuming RT-PCR have relied on CXR, chest CT, blood test results, or clinical information. (2) Methods: We proposed and compared five different types of deep learning algorithms (RNN, LSTM, Bi-LSTM, GRU, and transformer) for reducing the time required for RT-PCR diagnosis by learning the change in fluorescence value derived over time during the RT-PCR process. (3) Results: Among the five deep learning algorithms capable of training time series data, Bi-LSTM and GRU were shown to be able to decrease the time required for RT-PCR diagnosis by half or by 25% without significantly impairing the diagnostic performance of the COVID-19 RT-PCR test. (4) Conclusions: The diagnostic performance of the model developed in this study when 40 cycles of RT-PCR are used for diagnosis shows the possibility of nearly halving the time required for RT-PCR diagnosis.

An Atmospheric Plasma Jet Induces Expression of Wound Healing Genes in Progressive Burn Wounds in a Comb Burn Rat Model: A Pilot Study.

Burn-related injuries are devastating injuries with a high mortality rate that affect people of all ages worldwide. We assessed the effectiveness of plasma jet treatment in altering the expression of genes involved in wound healing in a prospective longitudinal observational animal study. Six male Sprague-Dawley rats weighing 350 g were used, and burn wounds were made by applying a preheated brass comb (100°C) to the back of the rats, resulting in four full-thickness burn wounds separated by three interspaces. A total of 18 burn wounds were induced on three rats. One side of the burn, on each rat received plasma treatment (plasma group), while the other side did not (control group). The interspaces were subjected to the plasma jet for 2 minutes per day until 7 days post-wounding. Plasma treatment significantly decreased the expression of proinflammatory cytokines. Furthermore, an increase in the expression of anti-inflammatory cytokines was observed in the plasma group. We showed that plasma jet treatment could improve burn wound healing by altering the expression of genes involved in the development of wound healing.

Prognostic value of targeted temperature management on outcomes of hanging-induced out-of-hospital cardiac arrest: A nationwide observational study.

ABSTRACT: This study aimed to evaluate the prognostic significance of targeted temperature management (TTM) on hanging-induced out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) patients using nationwide data of South Korea.Adult hanging-induced OHCA patients from 2008 to 2018 were included in this nationwide observational study. Patients who assigned into 2 groups based on whether they did (TTM group) or did not (non-TTM group) receive TTM. Outcome measures included survival to hospital discharge and a good neurological outcome at hospital discharge.Among the 293,852 OHCA patients, 3545 patients (non-TTM, n = 2762; TTM, n = 783) were investigated. After propensity score matching for all patients, 783 matched pairs were available for analysis. We observed no significant inter-group differences in the survival to hospital discharge (non-TTM, n = 27 [3.4%] vs TTM, n = 23 [2.9%], P = .666) or good neurological outcomes (non-TTM, n = 23 [2.9%] vs TTM, n = 14 [1.8%], P = .183). In the multivariate analysis, prehospital return of spontaneous circulation (odds ratio [OR], 22.849; 95% confidence interval [CI], 11.479-45.481, P < .001) was associated with an increase in survival to hospital discharge, and age (OR, 0.971; 95% CI, 0.944-0.998, P  = .035), heart disease (OR, 16.875; 95% CI, 3.028-94.036, P  = .001), and prehospital return of spontaneous circulation (OR, 133.251; 95% CI, 30.512-581.930, P < .001) were significant prognostic factors of good neurological outcome. However, TTM showed no significant association with either outcome.There were no significant differences in the survival to hospital discharge and good neurological outcomes between non-TTM and TTM groups of hanging-induced OHCA patients.

Analysis of the accuracy of automatic electrocardiogram interpretation in ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction.

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to analyze the association between the culprit artery and the diagnostic accuracy of automatic electrocardiogram (ECG) interpretation in patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). METHODS: This single-centered, retrospective cohort study included adult patients with STEMI who visited the emergency department between January 2017 and December 2020. The primary endpoint was the association between the culprit artery occlusion and the misinterpretation of ECG, evaluated by the chi-square test or Fisher exact test. RESULTS: The rate of misinterpretation of the automated ECG for patients with STEMI was 26.5% (31/117 patients). There was no significant correlation between the ST segment change in the four involved leads (anteroseptal, lateral, inferior, and aVR) and the misinterpretation of ECG (all P > 0.05). Single culprit artery occlusion significantly affected the misinterpretation of ECG compared with multiple culprit artery occlusion (single vs. multiple, 27/86 [31.3%] vs. 4/31 [12.9%], P = 0.045). There was no association between culprit artery and the misinterpretation of ECG (P = 0.132). CONCLUSION: Single culprit artery occlusion might increase misinterpretation of ECG compared with multiple culprit artery occlusions in the automatic interpretation of STEMI.

Educational suitability of new channel-type video-laryngoscope with AI-based glottis guidance system for novices wearing personal-protective-equipment.

ABSTRACT: The aim of this study was to determine which of 4 laryngoscopes, including A-LRYNGO, a newly developed channel-type video-laryngoscope with an embedded artificial intelligence-based glottis guidance system, is appropriate for tracheal intubation training in novice medical students wearing personal protective equipment (PPE).Thirty healthy senior medical school student volunteers were recruited. The participants underwent 2 tests with 4 laryngoscopes: Macintosh, McGrath, Pentax Airway-Scope and A-LRYNGO. The first test was conducted just after a lecture without any hands-on workshop. The second test was conducted after a one-on-one hands-on workshop. In each test, we measured the time required for tracheal intubation, intubation success rate, etc, and asked all participants to complete a short questionnaire.The time to completely insert the endotracheal tube with the Macintosh laryngoscope did not change significantly (P = .177), but the remaining outcomes significantly improved after the hands-on workshop (all P < .05). Despite being novice practitioners with no intubation experience and wearing PPE, the, 2 channel-type video-laryngoscopes were associated with good intubation-related performance before the hands-on workshop (all P < .001). A-LRYNGO's artificial intelligence-based glottis guidance system showed 93.1% accuracy, but 20.7% of trials were guided by the vocal folds.To prepare to manage the airway of critically ill patients during the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic, a channel-type video-laryngoscope is appropriate for tracheal intubation training for novice practitioners wearing PPE.

The application of a deep learning system developed to reduce the time for RT-PCR in COVID-19 detection.

Reducing the time to diagnose COVID-19 helps to manage insufficient isolation-bed resources and adequately accommodate critically ill patients. There is currently no alternative method to real-time reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), which requires 40 cycles to diagnose COVID-19. We propose a deep learning (DL) model to improve the speed of COVID-19 RT-PCR diagnosis. We developed and tested a DL model using the long short-term memory method with a dataset of fluorescence values measured in each cycle of 5810 RT-PCR tests. Among the DL models developed here, the diagnostic performance of the 21st model showed an area under the receiver operating characteristic (AUROC), sensitivity, and specificity of 84.55%, 93.33%, and 75.72%, respectively. The diagnostic performance of the 24th model showed an AUROC, sensitivity, and specificity of 91.27%, 90.00%, and 92.54%, respectively.

Diagnostic Accuracy of the Deep Learning Model for the Detection of ST Elevation Myocardial Infarction on Electrocardiogram.

We aimed to measure the diagnostic accuracy of the deep learning model (DLM) for ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) on a 12-lead electrocardiogram (ECG) according to culprit artery sorts. From January 2017 to December 2019, we recruited patients with STEMI who received more than one stent insertion for culprit artery occlusion. The DLM was trained with STEMI and normal sinus rhythm ECG for external validation. The primary outcome was the diagnostic accuracy of DLM for STEMI according to the three different culprit arteries. The outcomes were measured using the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUROC), sensitivity (SEN), and specificity (SPE) using the Youden index. A total of 60,157 ECGs were obtained. These included 117 STEMI-ECGs and 60,040 normal sinus rhythm ECGs. When using DLM, the AUROC for overall STEMI was 0.998 (0.996-0.999) with SEN 97.4% (95.7-100) and SPE 99.2% (98.1-99.4). There were no significant differences in diagnostic accuracy within the three culprit arteries. The baseline wanders in false positive cases (83.7%, 345/412) significantly interfered with the accurate interpretation of ST elevation on an ECG. DLM showed high diagnostic accuracy for STEMI detection, regardless of the type of culprit artery. The baseline wanders of the ECGs could affect the misinterpretation of DLM.

Analysis of Mortality in Intracerebral Hemorrhage Patients with Hyperacute Ischemic Stroke Treated Using Thrombolytic Therapy: A Nationwide Population-based Cohort Study in South Korea.

This study investigated the impact of intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) on the cumulative mortality of patients with hyperacute ischemic stroke. This population-based retrospective cohort study used claims data from the National Health Insurance Service customized database of South Korea. The recruitment period was 2005−2018. The study population included patients with hyperacute ischemic stroke who had received intravenous thrombolysis. The primary endpoint was 12-month cumulative mortality, which was analyzed in both the ICH and no-ICH groups. Of the 50,550 patients included, 2567 (5.1%) and 47,983 (94.9%) belonged to the ICH and no-ICH groups, respectively. In the univariable analysis for 12-month mortality, ICH patients were substantially more prevalent among dead patients than among patients who survived (11.6% versus 3.6%; p < 0.001). The overall 12-month cumulative mortality rate was 18.8%. Mortality in the ICH group was higher than that in the no-ICH group (42.8% versus 17.5%; p < 0.001). In the multivariable analysis, the risk of 12-month cumulative mortality was 2.97 times higher in the ICH group than in the no-ICH group (95% confidence interval, 2.79−3.16). The risk of 12-month cumulative mortality in hyperacute ischemic stroke can increase approximately threefold after the occurrence of spontaneous ICH following intravenous thrombolysis.

Simultaneous Pretreatment of Aspirin and Omega-3 Fatty Acid Attenuates Nuclear Factor-κB Activation in a Murine Model with Ventilator-Induced Lung Injury.

Ventilator-induced lung injury (VILI) is an important critical care complication. Nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) activation, a critical signaling event in the inflammatory response, has been implicated in the tracking of the lung injury. The present study aimed to determine the effect of simultaneous pretreatment with enteral aspirin and omega-3 fatty acid on lung injury in a murine VILI model. We compared the lung inflammation after the sequential administration of lipopolysaccharides and mechanical ventilation between the pretreated simultaneous enteral aspirin and omega-3 fatty acid group and the non-pretreatment group, by quantifying NF-κB activation using an in vivo imaging system to detect bioluminescence signals. The pretreated group with enteral aspirin and omega-3 fatty acid exhibited a smaller elevation of bioluminescence signals than the non-pretreated group (p = 0.039). Compared to the non-pretreated group, the pretreatment group with simultaneous enteral aspirin and omega-3 fatty acid showed reduced expression of the pro-inflammatory cytokine, tumor necrosis factor-α, in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (p = 0.038). Histopathological lung injury scores were also lower in the pretreatment groups compared to the only injury group. Simultaneous pretreatment with enteral administration of aspirin and omega-3 fatty acid could be a prevention method for VILI in patients with impending mechanical ventilation therapy.

Prognostic value of changes in the cardiac arrest rhythms from the prehospital stage to the emergency department in out-of-hospital cardiac arrest patients without prehospital returns of spontaneous circulation: A nationwide observational study.

BACKGROUND: This study aimed to assess the prognostic value of the changes in cardiac arrest rhythms from the prehospital stage to the ED (emergency department) in out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) patients without prehospital returns of spontaneous circulation (ROSC). METHODS: This retrospective analysis was performed using nationwide population-based OHCA data from South Korea between 2012 and 2016. Patients with OHCA with medical causes and without prehospital ROSC were included and divided into four groups according to the nature of their cardiac arrest rhythms (shockable or non-shockable) in the prehospital stage and in the ED: (1) the shockable and shockable (Shock-Shock) group, (2) the shockable and non-shockable (Shock-NShock) group, (3) the non-shockable and shockable (NShock-Shock) group, and (4) the non-shockable and non-shockable (NShock-NShock) group. The presence of a shockable rhythm was confirmed based on the delivery of an electrical shock. Propensity score matching and multivariate logistic regression analyses were used to assess the effect of changes in the cardiac rhythms on patient outcomes. The primary outcome was sustained ROSC in the ED; the secondary outcomes were survival to hospital discharge and good neurological outcomes at hospital discharge. RESULTS: After applying the exclusion criteria, 51,060 eligible patients were included in the study (Shock-Shock, 4223; Shock-NShock, 3060; NShock-Shock, 11,509; NShock-NShock, 32,268). The propensity score-matched data were extracted from the six comparative subgroups. For sustained ROSC in the ED, Shock-Shock showed a higher likelihood than Shock-NShock (P <0.01) and NShock-NShock (P <0.01), Shock-NShock showed a lower likelihood than NShock-Shock (P <0.01) and NShock-NShock (P <0.01), NShock-Shock showed a higher likelihood NShock-NShock (P <0.01). For survival to hospital discharge, Shock-Shock showed a higher likelihood than Shock-NShock (P <0.01), NShock-Shock (P <0.01), and NShock-NShock (P <0.01), Shock-NShock showed a higher likelihood than NShock-Shock (P <0.01) and NShock-NShock (P <0.01), of sustained ROSC in the ED. For good neurological outcomes, Shock-Shock showed higher likelihood than Shock-NShock (P <0.01), NShock-Shock (P <0.01), and NShock-NShock (P <0.01), Shock-NShock showed better likelihood than NShock-NShock (P <0.01), NShock-Shock showed a better likelihood than NShock-NShock (P <0.01). CONCLUSION: Sustained ROSC in the ED may be expected for patients with shockable rhythms in the ED compared with those with non-shockable rhythms in the ED. For the clinical outcomes, survival to hospital discharge and neurological outcomes, patients with Shock-Shock showed the best outcome, whereas patients with NShock-NShock showed the poorest outcome and Shock-NShock showed a higher likelihood of achieving survival to hospital discharge with no significant differences in the neurological outcomes compared with NShock-Shock.

The Effect of a Modified Constant Flow Insufflation of Oxygen during Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation in a Rat Model of Respiratory Cardiac Arrest on Arterial Oxygenation, Alveolar Barotrauma, and Brain Tissue Injury.

AIM: Intermittent positive pressure ventilation (IPPV) can adversely affect cardiopulmonary resuscitation outcomes by increasing the intrathoracic pressure. Continuous flow insufflation of oxygen (CFIO) has been investigated as a potential alternative, but evidence supporting its superiority over intermittent positive pressure ventilation in cases of cardiac arrest is scant. The aim of the current study was to compare the effects of continuous flow insufflation of oxygen using a one-way valve during cardiopulmonary-resuscitation with intermittent positive pressure ventilation in a rat model of respiratory arrest. METHODS: Male Sprague-Dawley rats weighing 400∼450 g (from minimum to maximum) were randomly assigned to either a sham, IPPV, or CFIO group (n = 10 per group). Respiratory arrest was induced by blocking the endotracheal tube. Arterial blood gas analysis was performed during cardiopulmonary resuscitation to compare the oxygenation levels. Tissues were then harvested to compare the degrees of pulmonary barotrauma and ischemic brain injury. RESULTS: Return of spontaneous circulation was observed in 6/10 rats in the IPPV group and 5/10 in the CFIO group. During cardiopulmonary resuscitation, the mean PaO2 was significantly higher in the CFIO group (83.10 mmHg) than in the IPPV group (56.10 mmHg). Lung biopsy revealed more inflammatory cells and marked thickening of the alveolar wall in the IPPV group; the group also exhibited a higher frequency of neuroglial cells and apoptotic bodies of pyramidal cells, resulting from ischemic injury. CONCLUSION: In a rat model of respiratory arrest, CFIO using a one-way valve resulted in a greater level of oxygenation and less lung and brain injuries than with IPPV.

The effectiveness of a focused rapid response team on reducing the incidence of cardiac arrest in the general ward.

Rapid response teams have been adopted to prevent unexpected in-ward cardiac arrest. However, there is no convincing evidence of optimal operation with rapid response team. Our aim was to address the impact of focused rapid response team on the safety of patients in wards. Comparison of focused with extended rapid response teams was performed in single center. The extended team operated on adult patients in whole ward (both medical and nonmedical ward) 24 hours per day, 7 days per week during 2012. In 2015, the operational time of the focused team was office hours from Monday to Friday and study population were limited to adult patients in the nonmedical ward. Unexpected in-ward cardiac arrests were compared between the extended team and focused team periods. During the focused team period, there was significant reduction in cardiac arrest per 1000 admissions in whole ward compared to the before the rapid response team period (1.09 vs 1.67, P < .001). Compared to that of the extended team period (1.42), there was also a significant reduction in cardiac arrest rate (P = .04). The cardiac arrest rate of nonmedical ward patients was also significantly decreased in the focused team period compared to that before the rapid response team period (0.43 vs 0.95, P < .001). Compared to the extended team period (0.64), there was a marginally significant reduction in cardiac arrest of nonmedical ward patients (P = .05). The focused rapid response team was associated with a reduced incidence of unexpected in-ward cardiac arrest. Further research on the optimal composition and operational time is needed.

Outcome analysis of traumatic out-of-hospital cardiac arrest patients according to the mechanism of injury: A nationwide observation study.

The variation in the outcome of traumatic out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (TOHCA) patients according to the mechanism of injury has been relatively unexplored. Therefore, this study aimed to determine whether the mechanism of injury is associated with survival to hospital discharge and good neurological outcome at hospital discharge in TOHCA.The study population comprised cases of TOHCA drawn from the national Out-of-hospital cardiac arrest registry (2012-2016). Traumatic causes were categorized into 6 groups: traffic accident, fall, collision, stab injury, and gunshot injury. Data were retrospectively extracted from emergency medical service and Korean Centers for Disease Control and Prevention records. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to identify factors associated with survival to discharge and good neurological outcome.The final analysis included a total of 8546 eligible TOHCA patients (traffic accident 5300, fall 2419, collision 572, stab injury 247, and gunshot injury 8). The overall survival rate was 18.4% (traffic accident 18.0%, fall 16.4%, collision 32.0%, stab injury 14.2%, and gunshot injury 12.5%). Good neurological outcome was achieved in 0.8% of all patients (traffic accident 0.8%, fall 0.8%, collision 1.2%, stab injury 0.8%, and gunshot injury 0.0%). In the multivariate analysis, injury mechanisms showed no significant difference in neurological outcomes, and only collision had a significant odds ratio for survival to discharge (odds ratio: 2.440; 95% confidence interval: 1.795-3.317) compared to the traffic accident group.In this study, the mechanism of injury was not associated with neurological outcome in TOHCA patients. Collision might be the only mechanism of injury to result in better survival to discharge than traffic accident.