Emergency medical services

BACKGROUND: Tinnitus is a complex and heterogeneous disease that has been identified as a common manifestation of COVID-19. To gain a comprehensive understanding of tinnitus symptoms in individuals following COVID-19 infection, we conducted an online survey called the China Ear Nose and Throat Symptom Survey in the COVID-19 Pandemic (CENTSS) among the Chinese population. OBJECTIVE: Our objective was to investigate tinnitus and ear-related symptoms after COVID-19 infection in the Chinese population, with the aim of providing a solid empirical foundation for improved health care...

BACKGROUND: Parkinson's disease is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder. The majority of the nearly 9 million people living with Parkinson's disease are men. As such, caregiving is often assumed by wives as the disease progresses. However, there is little research about the lived experience of wives as they transition to caregivers. OBJECTIVE: To describe the lived experience of wife caregivers of male spouses living at home with Parkinson's disease. METHODS: A descriptive phenomenological study...

Sarcoidosis is a rare granulomatous disease that can affect any organ. It leads to an increased risk of metabolic syndrome and insulin resistance, due to biochemical pathways involved in low-grade inflammation in both diseases. The aim of our retrospective case-control study was to evaluate the utility of triglyceride-glucose (TyG) index, a surrogate of insulin resistance, for metabolic assessment of sarcoidosis patients. A cohort of 90 sarcoidosis patients and a cohort of 90 control subjects were enrolled...

IMPORTANCE: Studies of influenza in children commonly rely on coded diagnoses, yet the ability of International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision codes to identify influenza in the emergency department (ED) and hospital is highly variable. The accuracy of newer International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems, Tenth Revision (ICD-10) codes to identify influenza in children is unknown. OBJECTIVE: To determine the accuracy of ICD-10 influenza discharge diagnosis codes in the pediatric ED and inpatient settings...

OBJECTIVES: Relative dysglycemia has been proposed as a clinical entity among critically ill patients in the ICU, but is not well studied. This study aimed to clarify associations of relative hyperglycemia and hypoglycemia during the first 24 hours after ICU admission with in-hospital mortality and the respective thresholds. DESIGN: A single-center retrospective study. SETTING: An urban tertiary hospital ICU. PATIENTS: Adult critically ill patients admitted urgently between January 2016 and March 2022...

OBJECTIVES: Hypotension is associated with adverse outcomes in critically ill and perioperative patients. However, these assumptions are supported by observational studies. This meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials aims to compare the impact of lower versus higher blood pressure targets on mortality. DATA SOURCES: We searched PubMed, Cochrane, and Scholar from inception to February 10, 2024. STUDY SELECTION: Randomized trials comparing lower versus higher blood pressure targets in the management of critically ill and perioperative settings...

OBJECTIVE: to analyze nurses' role in collecting, identifying and preserving traces in Emergency care for victims of violence, from the perspective of these professionals. METHOD: a qualitative study with an exploratory and descriptive approach. It was developed through semi-structured interviews with 21 nurses from hospitals that are part of the intersectoral flow to assist victims of violence from two reference hospitals in this type of care, in a capital city from southern Brazil...

BACKGROUND: Patients with emergency surgical conditions (ESCs) experience higher complication rates than those without emergency conditions. Our purpose was to improve time-based key performance indicators (KPIs) of care for ESC patients, including diagnostic workup, empiric stabilization, and referral to definitive care. METHODS: A rapid response program (ESTAT) was developed to screen for and coordinate optimal, timely care for a spectrum of high-risk ESCs, from the patient's index clinical encounter up to definitive care...

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Emergency medical services for out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) vary according to region and country, and patient prognosis differs accordingly. In Japan, physicians may provide prehospital care. However, the effect of physician-present prehospital care on achieving return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC) in patients with cardiac arrest is not clear. Here, we aimed to examine the effect of physician-present prehospital care on the prognosis of patients with OHCA at our hospital compared with physician-absent care...

BACKGROUND: Malignant hyperthermia (MH), a rare inherited condition seen almost exclusively in the perioperative setting, is triggered by volatile anesthetics or an intravenous paralytic drug, succinylcholine. It can, however, occur without any exposure to anesthetic drugs, being associated with heat illness and rhabdomyolysis, thus presenting a little-known risk to young athletes exercising in hot environments. OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to determine the first responder awareness of MH and its association with heat illness in young athletes within athletic and clinical environments...

This field report presents the planning and execution of a large-scale aeromedical refugee retrieval operation amid the on-going Russia-Ukraine crisis. The retrieval was coordinated by the Italian Department of Civil Protection and led by the Centrale Remota Operazioni Soccorso Sanitario (CROSS), a governmental facility overseeing medical assistance. An Airbus A320 was chosen for its capacity of 165 passengers, with one emergency stretcher maintaining maximum seating. The aircraft was equipped with an Advanced Life Support kit, and specific considerations for medical equipment compliance were made...

In Vietnam and the Philippines, viral hepatitis is the leading cause of cirrhosis and liver cancer. This study aims to understand the barriers and enablers of people receiving care for hepatitis B and C to support both countries' efforts to eliminate viral hepatitis as a public health threat by 2030. Retrospective, semi-structured interviews were conducted with a purposive, quota-based sample of 63 people living with hepatitis B or C in one province of Vietnam and one region of the Philippines. A rapid deductive approach to thematic analysis produced key findings among the three phases of care: (1) pre-awareness and testing, (2) linkage and treatment initiation and (3) ongoing treatment and recovery...

BACKGROUND: Severity of illness scoring systems are used in intensive care units to enable the calculation of adjusted outcomes for audit and benchmarking purposes. Similar tools are lacking for pre-hospital emergency medicine. Therefore, using a national helicopter emergency medical services database, we developed and internally validated a mortality prediction algorithm. METHODS: We conducted a multicentre retrospective observational register-based cohort study based on the patients treated by five physician-staffed Finnish helicopter emergency medical service units between 2012 and 2019...

BACKGROUND: Emergency Medical Services (EMS) staff often encounter various safety incidents. Work-related factors can lead to unsafe behaviors and safety incidents. This study assessed unsafe behaviors and their relationship with work-related factors among EMS staff. METHODS: This descriptive-correlational study used census sampling method to select 284 EMS staff in Ardabil Province, northwest of Iran, from April to June 2023. The data collection tools were demographic and occupational information form, Mearns Unsafe Behavior Scale, Cohen Perceived Stress Scale, Michielsen Fatigue Scale, and Patterson Teamwork Scale...

BACKGROUND: Lower gastrointestinal bleeding (LGIB) is a common reason for emergency department visits and subsequent hospitalizations. Recent data suggests that low-risk patients may be safely evaluated as an outpatient. Recommendations for healthcare systems to identify low-risk patients who can be safely discharged with timely outpatient follow-up have yet to be established. The primary objective of this study was to determine the role of patient predictors for the patients with LGIB to receive urgent endoscopic intervention...

Many individuals with serious mental illness are at high risk for hospitalization or death due to inadequate treatment of medical conditions or unhealthy behaviors. The authors describe demographic and clinical characteristics associated with increased risk in this population. Electronic data were obtained for individuals in treatment at a large Veterans' healthcare system who were at high risk according to a validated model. A random sample of these individuals was assessed in person. Multivariable regressions estimated the effect of numerous demographic, health, and clinical characteristics on risk...

BACKGROUND: In order to evaluate whether the new rescue means "community emergency paramedics" (Gemeindenotfallsanitäter [G-NFS]) relieves the emergency medical service (EMS) in the care of low-priority emergencies, the perspective of general practitioners and patients was also surveyed in a written questionnaire as part of an innovation fund project. Recruitment for participation in the study proved to be difficult. The aim of this study is to evaluate why the G-NFS decided against providing information on study participation and what measures would be necessary to include more emergency patients in surveys in the future...

PURPOSE: This study aimed to examine the interrupting effect of social distancing (SD) on emergency department (ED) patients with ischemic heart disease (IHD), stroke, asthma, and suicide attempts by PM2.5 exposure in eight Korean megacities from 2017 to 2020. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study used National Emergency Department Information System and AirKorea data. A total of 469014 patients visited EDs from 2017 to 2020. Interrupted time series analysis was employed to examine changes in the level and slope of the time series, relative risk, and confidence intervals (CIs) by PM2...

OBJECTIVE: Clinical practice guidelines suggest performing an electrocardiogram (EKG) in patients with chest pain within the first 10 minutes in the emergency department, warning about subdiagnosis in women. Possible differences based on sex were analyzed. METHOD: An observational and retrospective study in an Emergency Department, with adult patients admitted to the Chest Pain Unit in 2021. RESULTS: There were 1,469 patients, of whom 774 were men (52...

AIM: This study aims to explore regional variation and identify regions within Australia with high incidence of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) and low rates of bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). METHOD: Adult OHCAs of presumed medical aetiology occurring across Australia between 2017 and 2019 were mapped onto local government areas (LGA) using the location of arrest coordinates. Bayesian spatial models were applied to provide "smoothed" estimates of OHCA incidence and bystander CPR rates (for bystander-witnessed OHCAs) for each LGA...