Prehospital Tourniquet Use Should be a Trauma Team Activation Criterion.

2022 ◽  
pp. 000313482110604
Author(s):  
Kennith Coleman ◽  
Daniel Grabo ◽  
Alison Wilson ◽  
James Bardes
Keyword(s):  
Injured Patient ◽  
Trauma Team ◽  
Rural Environment ◽  
Trauma Surgeon ◽  
Severely Injured ◽  
Optimal Care ◽  
Tourniquet Time ◽  
Trauma Team Activation ◽  
Risks And Benefits ◽  
Activation Criterion

Purpose Prehospital tourniquet application is not a standard trauma team activation (TTA) criterion recommended by the ACS COT. Tourniquet use has seen a resurgence recently with associated risks and benefits of more liberal usage. Our institution added tourniquet application as TTA criterion in January 2019. This study aimed to evaluate the effect this would have on patient care and overtriage. Methods A prospective analysis was conducted for all TTA associated with tourniquets placed during 2019. An overtriage analysis was conducted utilizing a modified Cribari method as described in Resources for the Optimal Care of the Injured Patient, comparing patients that met standard TTA criteria (TTA-S), to those who met criteria due to tourniquet placement (TTA-T). Results During the study, there were 46 TTA with tourniquets. Mean prehospital tourniquet time was 80 minutes. Median ISS was 10, 8 (17%) had an ISS >15. Urgent operative intervention was needed in 74%, with 23% and 21% requiring orthopedic and vascular procedures, respectively. Tourniquets were correctly placed in 80% and clinically appropriate in 57%. Of these subjects, 25 (54%) were TTA-S and 21 TTA-T. Overtriage analysis was performed. Overtriage for TTA-T was 33.3%. Overtriage among TTA-S was 4%. Conclusion Patients with prehospital tourniquets are frequently severely injured. The immediate presence of a trauma surgeon can have significant impacts in these cases. This is particularly important in a rural environment with long tourniquet times. Prehospital tourniquet application as a TTA criteria does not result in excessive overtriage.

Geriatric Patients on Antithrombotic Agents who Fall: Does Trauma Team Activation Improve Outcomes?

2019 ◽  
Vol 85 (7) ◽  
pp. 721-724
Author(s):  
Peter Hwang ◽  
Adrian W. Ong ◽  
Alison Muller ◽  
Amanda Mcnicholas ◽  
Anthony Martin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Logistic Regression ◽  
Propensity Score ◽  
Geriatric Patients ◽  
Propensity Score Analysis ◽  
Trauma Team ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
Severely Injured ◽  
Severely Injured Patients ◽  
Trauma Team Activation ◽  
Injured Patients

Despite the incorporation of anticoagulant and antiplatelet (ACAP) drugs in our trauma triage criteria, it is unclear whether trauma team activation (TTA) impacts outcomes in geriatric patients on ACAP drugs sustaining falls. We hypothesized that TTA in this cohort was associated with improved outcomes. The hospital electronic database was queried to identify normotensive, awake patients aged ≥65 years on ACAP agent from 2014 to 2018 presenting to the emergency department after falls. The outcome was in-hospital mortality. The association between TTA and mortality was examined using logistic regression analysis and 1:1 propensity score matching analysis. In this study, 4540 patients on ACAP drugs were analyzed, with TTA occurring in 500 (11%). TTA occurred in younger but more severely injured patients with lower Glasgow Coma Score. Logistic regression revealed that TTA was not associated with mortality (odds ratio [95% confidence intervals], 2.04 [0.89–4.25]). The 1:1 propensity score analysis revealed similar mortality for the matched groups (non-TTA, 1.6% vs TTA, 2.2%, P = 0.64). In the elderly patients on ACAP agents, the current triage criteria resulted in the appropriate use of TTA for more severely injured patients. The lack of outcome benefit suggests that ACAP drug use as a criterion for TTA should be re-evaluated.

Undertriage Despite Use of Geriatric-Specific Trauma Team Activation Guidelines

2020 ◽  
pp. 000313482095145
Author(s):  
Ram V. Anantha ◽  
Matthew D. Painter ◽  
Franck Diaz-Garelli ◽  
Andrew M. Nunn ◽  
Preston R. Miller ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Hospital Mortality ◽  
Tertiary Care ◽  
Trauma Team ◽  
Morbidity And Mortality ◽  
Trauma Patients ◽  
Care Hospital ◽  
Severely Injured ◽  
Hemorrhage Control ◽  
Trauma Team Activation ◽  
Elderly Trauma Patients

Background Elderly trauma patients are at risk for undertriage, resulting in substantial morbidity and mortality. The objective of this study was to determine whether implementation of geriatric-specific trauma team activation (TTA) protocols appropriately identified severely-injured elderly patients. Methods This single-center retrospective study evaluated all severely injured (injury severity score [ISS] >15), geriatric (≥65 years) patients admitted to our Level 1 tertiary-care hospital between January 2014 and September 2017. Undertriage was defined as the lack of TTA despite presence of severe injuries. The primary outcome was all-cause in-hospital mortality; secondary outcomes were mortality within 48 hours of admission and urgent hemorrhage control. A multivariable logistic regression analysis was performed to identify predictors of appropriate triage in this study. Results Out of 1039 severely injured geriatric patients, 628 (61%) did not undergo TTA. Undertriaged patients were significantly older and had more comorbidities. In-hospital mortality was 5% and 31% in the undertriaged and appropriately triaged groups, respectively ( P < .0001). One percent of undertriaged patients needed urgent hemorrhage control, compared to 6% of the appropriately triaged group ( P < .0001). One percent of undertriaged patients died within 48 hours compared to 19% in the appropriately triaged group ( P < .0001). Predictors of appropriate triage include GCS, heart rate, systolic blood pressure, lactic acid, ISS, shock, and absence of dementia, stroke, or alcoholism. Discussion Geriatric-specific TTA guidelines continue to undertriage elderly trauma patients when using ISS as a metric to measure undertriage. However, undertriaged patients have much lower morbidity and mortality, suggesting the geriatric-specific TTA guidelines identify those patients at highest risk for poor outcomes.

Old Age With a Traumatic Mechanism of Injury Should Be a Trauma Team Activation Criterion

2019 ◽  
Vol 57 (2) ◽  
pp. 151-155 ◽  
Author(s):  
James M. Bardes ◽  
Elizabeth Benjamin ◽  
Morgan Schellenberg ◽  
Kenji Inaba ◽  
Demetrios Demetriades
Keyword(s):  
Old Age ◽  
Trauma Team ◽  
Mechanism Of Injury ◽  
Trauma Team Activation ◽  
Activation Criterion

scholarly journals The evolution of trauma care in the Netherlands over 20 years

2019 ◽  
Vol 46 (2) ◽  
pp. 329-335 ◽  
Author(s):  
Falco Hietbrink ◽  
Roderick M. Houwert ◽  
Karlijn J. P. van Wessem ◽  
Rogier K. J. Simmermacher ◽  
Geertje A. M. Govaert ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
The Netherlands ◽  
Trauma Care ◽  
Trauma System ◽  
Trauma Surgeon ◽  
Severely Injured ◽  
Severely Injured Patients ◽  
The Past ◽  
Level 1 ◽  
Trauma Surgeons ◽  
Injured Patients

Abstract Introduction In 1999 an inclusive trauma system was initiated in the Netherlands and a nationwide trauma registry, including all admitted trauma patients to every hospital, was started. The Dutch trauma system is run by trauma surgeons who treat both the truncal (visceral) and extremity injuries (fractures). Materials and Methods In this comprehensive review based on previous published studies, data over the past 20 years from the central region of the Netherlands (Utrecht) was evaluated. Results It is demonstrated that the initiation of the trauma systems and the governance by the trauma surgeons led to a region-wide mortality reduction of 50% and a mortality reduction for the most severely injured of 75% in the level 1 trauma centre. Furthermore, major improvements were found in terms of efficiency, demonstrating the quality of the current system and its constructs such as the type of surgeon. Due to the major reduction in mortality over the past few years, the emphasis of trauma care evaluation shifts towards functional outcome of severely injured patients. For the upcoming years, centralisation of severely injured patients should also aim at the balance between skills in primary resuscitation and surgical stabilization versus longitudinal surgical involvement. Conclusion Further centralisation to a limited number of level 1 trauma centres in the Netherlands is necessary to consolidate experience and knowledge for the trauma surgeon. The future trauma surgeon, as specialist for injured patients, should be able to provide the vast majority of trauma care in this system. For the remaining part, intramural, regional and national collaboration is essential

Pathologic Fibrinolysis is More Common in a Rural Trauma Setting

2020 ◽  
pp. 000313482097372
Author(s):  
James M. Bardes ◽  
Daniel J. Grabo ◽  
Sijin Wen ◽  
Alison Wilson
Keyword(s):  
Trauma Team ◽  
Rural Environment ◽  
Trauma Patients ◽  
Future Studies ◽  
Factors Influencing ◽  
American College Of Surgeons ◽  
Level 1 ◽  
Transferred Patients ◽  
Prehospital Time ◽  
Level 1 Trauma Center

Introduction Fibrinolysis (lysis) has been extensively studied in trauma patients. Many studies on the distribution of lysis phenotype have been conducted in setting with short prehospital time. This study aimed to evaluate the distribution of lysis phenotypes in a population with prolonged prehospital times in a rural environment. Methods A retrospective study was performed at an American College of Surgeons-verified level 1 trauma center, serving a large rural population. Full trauma team activations from January 1, 2017 to August 31, 2018 were evaluated, and all patients with an ISS>15 analyzed. Thromboelastography was routinely performed on all participants on arrival. Lysis phenotypes were classified based on LY30 results: shutdown (≤.8%), physiologic (.9-2.9%), and hyper (>2.9%). Results 259 patients were evaluated, 134 (52%) presented direct from the scene. For scene patients, lysis distribution was 24% physiologic, 49% shutdown, and 27% hyper. Transferred patients demonstrated a reduction in physiologic lysis to 14% ( P = .03), shutdown present in 66%, and hyper in 20%. Empiric prehospital tranexamic acid was given to 18 patients, physiologic lysis was present in 6%, shutdown 72%, and hyper 22%; this increase was not statistically significant ( P = .5). Conclusion Fibrinolysis phenotypes are not consistent across all trauma populations. This study showed rural trauma patients had a significantly increased rate of pathologic lysis. This was consistent for scene and transfer patients who received care at another facility prior to arrival for definitive care. Future studies to evaluate the factors influencing these differences are warranted.

Isolated intracranial hemorrhage in elderly patients with pre-injury anticoagulation: is full trauma team activation necessary?

2021 ◽  
Vol 268 ◽  
pp. 491-497
Author(s):  
Joseph Diaz ◽  
Alexandra Rooney ◽  
Richard Y Calvo ◽  
Derek A Benham ◽  
Matthew Carr ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Elderly Patients ◽  
Intracranial Hemorrhage ◽  
Trauma Team ◽  
Trauma Team Activation

Let the Surgeon Sleep: Trauma Team Activation for Severe Hypotension

2008 ◽  
Vol 65 (6) ◽  
pp. 1245-1252 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marc J. Shapiro ◽  
Jane E. McCormack ◽  
James Jen
Keyword(s):  
Trauma Team ◽  
Trauma Team Activation ◽  
Severe Hypotension

scholarly journals LO89: Factors associated with delay in trauma team activation and impact on patient outcomes

CJEM ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 19 (S1) ◽  
pp. S58-S59
Author(s):  
R. Connolly ◽  
M. Woo ◽  
J. Lampron ◽  
J.J. Perry
Keyword(s):  
Length Of Stay ◽  
Trauma Team ◽  
Operative Management ◽  
Trauma Patients ◽  
Early Group ◽  
Emergency Physicians ◽  
Trauma Team Activation ◽  
Factors Associated ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Delayed Group

Introduction: Trauma code activation is initiated by emergency physicians using physiologic and anatomic criteria, mechanism of injury and patient demographic factors in conjunction with data obtained from emergency medical service personnel. This enables rapid definitive treatment of trauma patients. Our objective was to identify factors associated with delayed trauma team activation. Methods: We conducted a health records review to supplement data from a regional trauma center database. We assessed consecutive cases from the trauma database from January 2008 to March 2014 including all cases in which a trauma code was activated by an emergency physician. We defined a delay in trauma code activation as a time greater than 30 minutes from time to arrival to trauma team activation. Data were collected in Microsoft Excel and analyzed in Statistical Analysis System (SAS). We conducted univariate analysis for factors potentially influencing trauma team activation and we subsequently used multiple logistic regression analysis models for delayed activation in relation to mortality, length of stay and time to operative management. Results: 1020 patients were screened from which 174 patients were excluded, as they were seen directly by the trauma team. 846 patients were included for our analysis. 4.1% (35/846) of trauma codes were activated after 30 minutes. Mean age was 40.8 years in the early group versus 49.2 in the delayed group p=0.01. There was no significant difference in type of injury, injury severity or time from injury between the two groups. Patients were over 70 years in 7.6% in the early activation group vs 17.1% in the delayed group (p=0.04). 77.7% of the early group were male vs 71.4% in the delayed group (p=0.39). There was no significant difference in mortality (15.2% vs 11.4% p=0.10), median length of stay (10 days in both groups p=0.94) or median time to operative management (331 minutes vs 277 minutes p=0.52). Conclusion: Delayed activation is linked with increasing age with no clear link with increased mortality. Given the severe injuries in the delayed cohort which required activation of the trauma team further emphasis on the older trauma patient and interventions to recognize this vulnerable population should be made. When assessing elderly trauma patients emergency physicians should have a low threshold to activate trauma teams.

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