What is the impact of physicians in prehospital treatment for patients in need of acute critical care? – An overview of reviews

Author(s):  
Gitte Valentin ◽  
Lotte Groth Jensen

AbstractObjectivesThe aim of this overview was to systematically identify and synthesize existing evidence from systematic reviews on the impact of prehospital physician involvement.MethodsThe Medline, Embase, and Cochrane library were searched from 1 January 2000 to 17 November 2017. We included systematic reviews comparing physician-based with non–physician-based prehospital treatment in patients with one of five critical conditions requiring a rapid response.ResultsTen reviews published from 2009 to 2017 were included. Physician treatment was associated with increased survival in patients with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest and patients with severe trauma; in the latter group, the result was based on more limited evidence. The success rate of prehospital endotracheal intubation (ETI) has improved over the years, but ETI by physicians is still associated with higher success rates than intubation by paramedics. In patients with severe traumatic brain injury, intubation by paramedics who were not well skilled to do so markedly increased mortality.ConclusionsCurrent evidence is hinting at a benefit of physicians in selected aspects of prehospital emergency services, including treatment of patients with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest and critically ill or injured patients in need of prehospital intubation. Evidence is, however, limited by confounding and bias, and comparison is hampered by differences in case mix and the organization of emergency medical services. Future research should strive to design studies that enable appropriate control of baseline confounding and obtain follow-up data for the proportion of patients who die in the prehospital setting.

BMJ Open ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (11) ◽  
pp. e031655 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Majewski ◽  
Stephen Ball ◽  
Judith Finn

ObjectivesTo assess the current evidence on the effect pre-arrest comorbidity has on survival and neurological outcomes following out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA).DesignSystematic review according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses.Data sourcesMEDLINE, Ovid Embase, Scopus, CINAHL, Cochrane Library and MedNar were searched from inception to 31 December 2018.Eligibility criteriaStudies included if they examined the association between prearrest comorbidity and OHCA survival and neurological outcomes in adult or paediatric populations.Data extraction and synthesisData were extracted from individual studies but not pooled due to heterogeneity. Quality of included studies was assessed using the Newcastle-Ottawa Quality Assessment Scale.ResultsThis review included 29 observational studies. There were high levels of clinical heterogeneity between studies with regards to patient recruitment, inclusion criteria, outcome measures and statistical methods used which ultimately resulted in a high risk of bias. Comorbidities reported across the studies were diverse, with some studies reporting individual comorbidities while others reported comorbidity burden using tools like the Charlson Comorbidity Index. Generally, prearrest comorbidity was associated with both reduced survival and poorer neurological outcomes following OHCA with 79% (74/94) of all reported adjusted results across 23 studies showing effect estimates suggesting lower survival with 42% (40/94) of these being statistically significant. OHCA survival was particularly reduced in patients with a prior history of diabetes (four out of six studies). However, a prearrest history of myocardial infarction appeared to be associated with increased survival in one of four studies.ConclusionsPrearrest comorbidity is generally associated with unfavourable OHCA outcomes, however differences between individual studies makes comparisons difficult. Due to the clinical and statistical heterogeneity across the studies, no meta-analysis was conducted. Future studies should follow a more standardised approach to investigating the impact of comorbidity on OHCA outcomes.PROSPERO registration numberCRD42018087578


BMJ Open ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. e035287
Author(s):  
Min Chen ◽  
Tai-Chun Tang ◽  
Tao-Hong He ◽  
Yong-Jun Du ◽  
Di Qin ◽  
...  

IntroductionThe prevalence of haemorrhoidal diseases was high in general population, and many treatments are proposed for the management of haemorrhoids. The treatments include conservative and surgical interventions; the credibility and strength of current evidence of their effectiveness are not comprehensively evaluated. We aim to evaluate the credibility of systematic reviews and meta-analyses that assess the effectiveness of the treatments for haemorrhoidal diseases through an umbrella review.Methods and analysisWe will search Ovid Medline, Embase, Cochrane library and Web of Science from inception to March 2020 without any language restriction. We will include meta-analyses that examine the effectiveness of treatments in the management of haemorrhoids. Two reviewers will independently screen the titles and abstracts of retrieved articles, and they will extract data from the included meta-analyses. For each meta-analysis, we will estimate the effect size of a treatment through the random-effect model and the fixed-effect model, and we will evaluate between-study heterogeneity (Cochrane’s Q and I2statistics) and small-study effect (Egger’s test); we will also estimate the evidence of excess significance bias. Evidence of each treatment will be graded according to prespecified criteria. Methodological quality of each meta-analysis will be evaluated by using Assessment of Multiple Systematic Reviews 2. The corrected cover area method will be used to assess the impact of overlap in reviews on the findings of the umbrella review.Ethics and disseminationWe will present the results of the umbrella review at conferences and publish the final report in a peer-reviewed journal. The umbrella review does not require ethical approval.PROSPERO registration numberCRD42019140702.


2020 ◽  
Vol 35 (4) ◽  
pp. 372-381
Author(s):  
Junhong Wang ◽  
Hua Zhang ◽  
Zongxuan Zhao ◽  
Kaifeng Wen ◽  
Yaoke Xu ◽  
...  

AbstractObjective:This systemic review and meta-analysis was conducted to explore the impact of dispatcher-assisted bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation (DA-BCPR) on bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation (BCPR) probability, survival, and neurological outcomes with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA).Methods:Electronically searching of PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane Library, along with manual retrieval, were done for clinical trials about the impact of DA-BCPR which were published from the date of inception to December 2018. The literature was screened according to inclusion and exclusion criteria, the baseline information, and interested outcomes were extracted. Two reviewers assessed the methodological quality of the included studies. Pooled odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) were calculated by STATA version 13.1.Results:In 13 studies, 235,550 patients were enrolled. Compared with no dispatcher instruction, DA-BCPR tended to be effective in improving BCPR rate (I2 = 98.2%; OR = 5.84; 95% CI, 4.58-7.46; P <.01), return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC) before admission (I2 = 36.0%; OR = 1.17; 95% CI, 1.06-1.29; P <.01), discharge or 30-day survival rate (I2 = 47.7%; OR = 1.25; 95% CI, 1.06-1.46; P <.01), and good neurological outcome (I2 = 30.9%; OR = 1.24; 95% CI, 1.04-1.48; P = .01). However, no significant difference in hospital admission was found (I2 = 29.0%; OR = 1.09; 95% CI, 0.91-1.30; P = .36).Conclusion:This review shows DA-BPCR plays a positive role for OHCA as a critical section in the life chain. It is effective in improving the probability of BCPR, survival, ROSC before admission, and neurological outcome.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Seth En Teoh ◽  
Yoshio Masuda ◽  
Darren Jun Hao Tan ◽  
Nan Liu ◽  
Laurie J. Morrison ◽  
...  

Abstract Background The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has significantly influenced epidemiology, yet its impact on out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) remains unclear. We aimed to evaluate the impact of the pandemic on the incidence and case fatality rate (CFR) of OHCA. We also evaluated the impact on intermediate outcomes and clinical characteristics. Methods PubMed, EMBASE, Web of Science, Scopus, and Cochrane Library databases were searched from inception to May 3, 2021. Studies were included if they compared OHCA processes and outcomes between the pandemic and historical control time periods. Meta-analyses were performed for primary outcomes (annual incidence, mortality, and case fatality rate [CFR]), secondary outcomes (field termination of resuscitation [TOR], return of spontaneous circulation [ROSC]), survival to hospital admission, and survival to hospital discharge), and clinical characteristics (shockable rhythm and etiologies). This study was registered in the International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews (PROSPERO) (CRD42021253879). Results The COVID-19 pandemic was associated with a 39.5% increase in pooled annual OHCA incidence (p < 0.001). Pooled CFR was increased by 2.65% (p < 0.001), with a pooled odds ratio (OR) of 1.95 for mortality (95% confidence interval [95%CI] 1.51–2.51). There was increased field TOR (OR = 2.46, 95%CI 1.62–3.74). There were decreased ROSC (OR = 0.65, 95%CI 0.55–0.77), survival to hospital admission (OR = 0.65, 95%CI 0.48–0.89), and survival to discharge (OR = 0.52, 95%CI 0.40–0.69). There was decreased shockable rhythm (OR = 0.73, 95%CI 0.60–0.88) and increased asphyxial etiology of OHCA (OR = 1.17, 95%CI 1.02–1.33). Conclusion Compared to the pre-pandemic period, the COVID-19 pandemic period was significantly associated with increased OHCA incidence and worse outcomes.


2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohammed S. Alshahrani ◽  
Hassan W. Aldandan

Abstract Background Out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) is a common cause of death worldwide (Neumar et al., Circulation 122:S729–S767, 2010), affecting about 300,000 persons in the USA on an annual basis; 92% of them die (Roger et al., Circulation 123:e18–e209, 2011). The existing evidence about the use of sodium bicarbonate (SB) for the treatment of cardiac arrest is controversial. We performed this study to summarize the evidence about the use of SB in patients with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA). Methods We searched PubMed, Scopus, EBSCO, Web of Science, and Cochrane Library, until June 2019, for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and observational studies that used SB in patients with OHCA. Outcomes of interest were the rate of survival to discharge, return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC), sustained ROSC, and good neurological outcomes at discharge. Odds ratio (OR) with their 95% confidence interval (CI) were pooled in a random or fixed meta-analysis model. Results A total of 14 studies (four RCTs and 10 observational studies) enrolling 28,412 patients were included; of them, eight studies were included in the meta-analysis. The overall pooled estimate did not favor SB or control in terms of survival rate at discharge (OR= 0.66, 95% CI [0.18, 2.44], p=0.53) and ROSC rate (OR= 1.54, 95% CI [0.38, 6.27], p=0.54), while the pooled estimate of two studies showed that SB was associated with less sustained ROSC (OR= 0.27, 95% CI [0.07, 0.98], p=0.045) and good neurological outcomes at discharge (OR= 0.12, 95% CI [0.09, 0.15], p<0.01). Conclusion The current evidence demonstrated that SB was not superior to the control group in terms of survival to discharge and return of spontaneous circulation. Further, SB was associated with lower rates of sustained ROSC and good neurological outcomes.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Seth En Teoh ◽  
Yoshio Masuda ◽  
Darren Jun Hao Tan ◽  
Nan Liu ◽  
Laurie J. Morrison ◽  
...  

Abstract Background The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has significantly influenced epidemiology, yet its impact on out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) remains unclear. We aimed to evaluate the impact of the pandemic on the incidence and case fatality rate (CFR) of OHCA. We also evaluated the impact on intermediate outcomes and clinical characteristics. Methods PubMed, EMBASE, Web of Science, Scopus, and Cochrane Library databases were searched from inception to May 3, 2021. Studies were included if they compared OHCA processes and outcomes between the pandemic and historical control time periods. Meta-analyses were performed for primary outcomes [annual incidence, mortality, and case fatality rate (CFR)], secondary outcomes [field termination of resuscitation (TOR), return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC), survival to hospital admission, and survival to hospital discharge], and clinical characteristics (shockable rhythm and etiologies). This study was registered in the International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews (PROSPERO) (CRD42021253879). Results The COVID-19 pandemic was associated with a 39.5% increase in pooled annual OHCA incidence (p < 0.001). Pooled CFR was increased by 2.65% (p < 0.001), with a pooled odds ratio (OR) of 1.95 for mortality [95% confidence interval (95%CI) 1.51–2.51]. There was increased field TOR (OR = 2.46, 95%CI 1.62–3.74). There were decreased ROSC (OR = 0.65, 95%CI 0.55–0.77), survival to hospital admission (OR = 0.65, 95%CI 0.48–0.89), and survival to discharge (OR = 0.52, 95%CI 0.40–0.69). There was decreased shockable rhythm (OR = 0.73, 95%CI 0.60–0.88) and increased asphyxial etiology of OHCA (OR = 1.17, 95%CI 1.02–1.33). Conclusion Compared to the pre-pandemic period, the COVID-19 pandemic period was significantly associated with increased OHCA incidence and worse outcomes.


2021 ◽  
Vol 20 (Supplement_1) ◽  
Author(s):  
B Farquharson ◽  
D Dixon ◽  
B Williams

Abstract Funding Acknowledgements Type of funding sources: Public grant(s) – National budget only. Main funding source(s): Chief Scientist Office, Scottish Government OnBehalf BICeP Study Group Background Prompt, effective CPR greatly increases the chances of survival in out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. However, it is often not provided, even by people who have previously undertaken training. Psychological and behavioural factors are likely to be important in relation to CPR initiation by lay-people but have not yet been systematically identified. Objective To identify the psychological and behavioural factors associated with CPR initiation amongst lay-people.  Methods   Data sources Cochrane Library, MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, PsycInfo and Google Scholar.  Study eligibility criteria Primary studies reporting psychological or behavioural factors and data on CPR initiation involving lay-people published (inception to 15th January 2020). Study appraisal and synthesis methods Potential studies were screened and quality assessed independently by two reviewers. Study characteristics, psychological and behavioural factors associated with CPR initiation were extracted from included studies, categorised by study type and synthesised narratively.  Results Ninety studies (132,429 participants) comprising various designs, populations and of mostly weak quality were identified. The strongest and most ecologically valid studies identified factors associated with CPR initiation: the overwhelming emotion of the situation, perceptions of capability, uncertainty about when CPR is appropriate, feeling unprepared  and fear of doing harm. Current evidence is limited by a preponderance of atheoretical cross-sectional surveys using unvalidated measures with relatively little formal testing of posited ‘predictors’. Conclusions We will present the psychological and behavioural factors that are likely useful foci for future interventions aiming to increase CPR initiation. The literature in this area would benefit from more robust study designs which make greater use of theory.


2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ryan Chow ◽  
Eileen Huang ◽  
Allen Li ◽  
Sophie Li ◽  
Sarah Y. Fu ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Postpartum depression (PPD) is a highly prevalent mental health problem that affects parental health with implications for child health in infancy, childhood, adolescence and beyond. The primary aim of this study was to critically appraise available systematic reviews describing interventions for PPD. The secondary aim was to evaluate the methodological quality of the included systematic reviews and their conclusions. Methods An electronic database search of MEDLINE, Embase, and the Cochrane Library from 2000 to 2020 was conducted to identify systematic reviews that examined an intervention for PPD. A Measurement Tool to Assess Systematic Reviews was utilized to independently score each included systematic review which was then critically appraised to better define the most effective therapeutic options for PPD. Results Of the 842 studies identified, 83 met the a priori criteria for inclusion. Based on the systematic reviews with the highest methodological quality, we found that use of antidepressants and telemedicine were the most effective treatments for PPD. Symptoms of PPD were also improved by traditional herbal medicine and aromatherapy. Current evidence for physical exercise and cognitive behavioural therapy in treating PPD remains equivocal. A significant, but weak relationship between AMSTAR score and journal impact factor was observed (p = 0.03, r = 0.24; 95% CI, 0.02 to 0.43) whilst no relationship was found between the number of total citations (p = 0.27, r = 0.12; 95% CI, − 0.09 to 0.34), or source of funding (p = 0.19). Conclusion Overall the systematic reviews on interventions for PPD are of low-moderate quality and are not improving over time. Antidepressants and telemedicine were the most effective therapeutic interventions for PPD treatment.


BMJ Open ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. e043807
Author(s):  
Jiantong Shen ◽  
Wenming Feng ◽  
Yike Wang ◽  
Qiyuan Zhao ◽  
Billong Laura Flavorta ◽  
...  

IntroductionEfficacy of aliskiren combination therapy with other antihypertensive has been evaluated in the treatment of patients with hypertension in recent systematic reviews. However, most previous reviews only focused on one single health outcome or one setting, none of them made a full summary that assessed the impact of aliskiren combination treatment comprehensively. As such, this umbrella review based on systematic reviews and meta-analyses is aimed to synthesise the evidences on efficacy, safety and tolerability of aliskiren-based therapy for hypertension and related comorbid patients.Methods and analysisA comprehensive search of PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane Library, CNKI published from inception to August 2020 will be conducted. The selected articles are systematic reviews which evaluated efficacy, safety and tolerability of aliskiren combination therapy. Two reviewers will screen eligible articles, extract data and evaluate quality independently. Any disputes will be resolved by discussion or the arbitration of a third person. The quality of reporting evidence will be assessed using the Assessment of Multiple Systematic Reviews V.2 tool tool. We will take a mixed-methods approach to synthesising the review literatures, reporting summary of findings tables and iteratively mapping the results.Ethics and disseminationEthical approval is not required for the study, as we would only collect data from available published materials. This umbrella review will be also submitted to a peer-reviewed journal for publication after completion.PROSPERO registration numberCRD42020192131.


Author(s):  
Yu-Lin Hsieh ◽  
Meng-Che Wu ◽  
Jon Wolfshohl ◽  
James d’Etienne ◽  
Chien-Hua Huang ◽  
...  

Abstract Introduction This study is aimed to investigate the association of intraosseous (IO) versus intravenous (IV) route during cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) with outcomes after out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA). Methods We systematically searched PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library and Web of Science from the database inception through April 2020. Our search strings included designed keywords for two concepts, i.e. vascular access and cardiac arrest. There were no limitations implemented in the search strategy. We selected studies comparing IO versus IV access in neurological or survival outcomes after OHCA. Favourable neurological outcome at hospital discharge was pre-specified as the primary outcome. We pooled the effect estimates in random-effects models and quantified the heterogeneity by the I2 statistics. Time to intervention, defined as time interval from call for emergency medical services to establishing vascular access or administering medications, was hypothesized to be a potential outcome moderator and examined in subgroup analysis with meta-regression. Results Nine retrospective observational studies involving 111,746 adult OHCA patients were included. Most studies were rated as high quality according to Newcastle-Ottawa Scale. The pooled results demonstrated no significant association between types of vascular access and the primary outcome (odds ratio [OR], 0.60; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.27–1.33; I2, 95%). In subgroup analysis, time to intervention was noted to be positively associated with the pooled OR of achieving the primary outcome (OR: 3.95, 95% CI, 1.42–11.02, p: 0.02). That is, when the studies not accounting for the variable of “time to intervention” in the statistical analysis were pooled together, the meta-analytic results between IO access and favourable outcomes would be biased toward inverse association. No obvious publication bias was detected by the funnel plot. Conclusions The meta-analysis revealed no significant association between types of vascular access and neurological outcomes at hospital discharge among OHCA patients. Time to intervention was identified to be an important outcome moderator in this meta-analysis of observation studies. These results call for the need for future clinical trials to investigate the unbiased effect of IO use on OHCA CPR.


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