Availability of Bedside and Laboratory Testing for Carbon Monoxide Poisoning in the Upper Midwestern United States.
West J Emerg Med
; 20(3): 506-511, 2019 May.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-31123553
ABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION:
The objective of this study was to assess the ability to test patients for carbon monoxide (CO) exposure in all hospitals in three United States (U.S.) Midwestern states.METHODS:
We surveyed hospitals in three states. Telephone queries assessed processes for measuring carboxyhemoglobin, including capacity for real-time vs send-out testing. Facilities were separated based on their location's population size for further analysis. Descriptive statistics are reported.RESULTS:
Of the 250 hospitals queried, we ultimately excluded 25. Nearly all (220, 97.8%) reported a process in place to test for CO exposure. Over 40% (n=92) lacked real-time testing. Testing ability was positively associated with increasing population size quartile (range 32.6% - 100%). Hospitals in the lowest-quartile population centers were more likely to report that they were unable to test in real time than those in the largest-quartile population centers (67.4% vs 0%).CONCLUSION:
In a large geographic region encompassing three states, hospital-based and real-time capacity to test for CO exposure is not universal. Hospitals in smaller population areas are more likely to lack real-time testing or any testing at all. This may have significant public health, triage, and referral implications for patients.
Texto completo:
1
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Intoxicação por Monóxido de Carbono
/
Técnicas de Laboratório Clínico
/
Testes Imediatos
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Acessibilidade aos Serviços de Saúde
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Hospitais
Tipo de estudo:
Diagnostic_studies
Limite:
Humans
País como assunto:
America do norte
Idioma:
En
Ano de publicação:
2019
Tipo de documento:
Article