Edward Pei-Chuan Huang

Obstacles delaying the prompt deployment of piston-type mechanical cardiopulmonary resuscitation devices during emergency department resuscitation: A video-recording and time-motion study

BACKGROUND The quality of cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) is important to survival after cardiac arrest. Mechanical devices (MD) provide constant CPR, but their effectiveness may be affected by deployment timeliness. OBJECTIVES To identify the timeliness of the overall and of each essential step in the deployment of a piston-type MD during emergency department (ED) resuscitation, and to identify factors associated with delayed MD deployment by video recordings. METHODS Between December 2005 and December 2008, video clips from resuscitations with CPR sessions using a MD in the ED were reviewed using time-motion analyses. The overall deployment timeliness and the time spent on each essential step of deployment were measured. RESULTS There were 37 CPR recordings that used a MD. Deployment of MD took an average 122.6 ± 57.8s. The 3 most time-consuming steps were: (1) setting the device (57.8 ± 38.3s), (2) positioning the patient (33.4 ± 38.0 s), and (3) positioning the device (14.7 ± 9.5s). Total no flow time was 89.1 ± 41.2s (72.7% of total time) and associated with the 3 most time-consuming steps. There was no difference in the total timeliness, no-flow time, and no-flow ratio between different rescuer numbers, time of day of the resuscitation, or body size of patients. CONCLUSIONS Rescuers spent a significant amount of time on MD deployment, leading to long no-flow times. Lack of familiarity with the device and positioning strategy were associated with poor performance. Additional training in device deployment strategies are required to improve the benefits of mechanical CPR.

Predicting high vancomycin minimum inhibitory concentration isolate infection among patients with community-onset methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus bacteraemia

OBJECTIVES Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) isolates with an elevated vancomycin MIC ≥2 mg/L have been increasingly identified in many countries. We aimed to develop a clinical score to predict vancomycin MIC ≥2 mg/L in patients with community-onset MRSA bacteraemia. METHODS This retrospective cohort study enrolled 394 patients with MRSA bacteraemia. Vancomycin MICs of all MRSA isolates were determined by agar dilution method. Clinical characteristics between patients with high (≥2 mg/L) and low (≤1 mg/L) vancomycin MIC MRSA bacteraemia were compared. Independent predictors of high vancomycin MIC isolate infection were identified and used to create a score-based predictive model. RESULTS Among the 394 study patients, 56 (14.2%) had MRSA isolates with a vancomycin MIC ≥2 mg/L. The final regression model included 6 independent predictors: chronic liver disease (adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 2.99; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.39-6.42), prior recovery of MRSA from respiratory tract specimen (aOR, 2.54; 95% CI, 1.15-5.61), end-stage renal disease (aOR, 2.53; 95% CI, 1.33-4.78), severe sepsis or septic shock on presentation (aOR, 2.39; 95% CI, 1.28-4.44), prior vancomycin exposure (aOR, 2.21; 95% CI, 1.13-4.30), and recent hospitalization within 3 months (aOR, 2.11; 95% CI; 1.01-4.40). All independent predictors had a value of one point. Youdens index statistics indicated a score of ≥3 as best cutoff value that had a sensitivity of 69.6% and specificity of 78.4%. CONCLUSIONS Simple decision rule helps clinicians stratify the risk of high vancomycin MIC MRSA infection when deciding empirical therapy for patients with community-onset infections.

The Effect of Successful Intubation on Patient Outcomes After Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest in Taipei

Study objective: The effect of out‐of‐hospital intubation in patients with out‐of‐hospital cardiac arrest remains controversial. The Taipei City paramedics are the earliest authorized to perform out‐of‐hospital intubation among Asian areas. This study evaluates the association between successful intubation and out‐of‐hospital cardiac arrest survival in Taipei. Methods: We analyzed 6 years of Utstein‐based registry data from nontrauma adult patients with out‐of‐hospital cardiac arrest who underwent out‐of‐hospital airway management including intubation, laryngeal mask airway, or bag‐valve‐mask ventilation. The primary analysis was intubation success on patient outcomes. The primary outcome was survival to discharge and the secondary outcomes included sustained return of spontaneous circulation and favorable neurologic survival. Sensitivity analysis was performed with intubation attempts rather than intubation success. Subgroup analysis of advanced life support–serviced districts was also performed. Results: A total of 10,853 cases from 2008 to 2013 were analyzed. Among out‐of‐hospital cardiac arrest patients receiving airway management, successful intubation, laryngeal mask airway, and bag‐valve‐mask ventilation was reported in 1,541, 3,099, and 6,213 cases, respectively. Compared with bag‐valve‐mask device use, successful out‐of‐hospital intubation was associated with improved chances of sustained return of spontaneous circulation (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] 1.91; 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.66 to 2.19), survival to discharge (aOR 1.98; 95% CI 1.57 to 2.49), and favorable neurologic outcome (aOR 1.44; 95% CI 1.03 to 2.03). The results were comparable in sensitivity and subgroup analyses. Conclusion: In nontrauma adult out‐of‐hospital cardiac arrest in Taipei, successful out‐of‐hospital intubation was associated with improved odds of sustained return of spontaneous circulation, survival to discharge, and favorable neurologic outcome.

The impact of adding clinical assistants on patient waiting time in a crowded emergency department

Background Emergency department (ED) crowding causes prolonged waiting times. Objective To evaluate the potential benefit of introducing clinical assistants to a busy and crowded ED. Methods This was a retrospective cohort study at an urban, academic tertiary medical centre. We introduced one clinical assistant to each ED shift. The main task of clinical assistants was managing the flow of incoming ED patients. The case group consisted of all adult non-trauma emergency patients during the case period from 1 September to 30 November 2008. The first control group consisted of all adult non-trauma emergency patients between 1 June and 31 August 2008 and the second control group consisted of all patients treated between 1 September and 30 November 2007. The primary outcome was the ‘waiting time’, defined as the time from triage to the time of the first medical order entered into the computer system. The secondary outcome was the number of adult non-trauma emergency patients who left the ED without being seen. Results There were 12 257 cases and 25 950 controls. The mean and median waiting times were significantly shorter in the case group. The mean waiting time of the case group was 20.86 min, which was 4.51 min (17.8%) shorter than that of the first control group and 7.41 min (26.2%) shorter than that of the second control group. The median waiting time of the case group was also significantly shorter than those of the control groups. The number of the patients who left without being seen was significantly smaller in the case period. Conclusions In a busy and crowded ED, the introduction of clinical assistants to an existing emergency health service effectively reduces patient waiting times and decreases the number of patients leaving without being seen.

Performance of a simplified termination of resuscitation rule for adult traumatic cardiopulmonary arrest in the prehospital setting

Objective The prehospital termination of resuscitation (TOR) guidelines for traumatic cardiopulmonary arrest (TCPA) was proposed in 2003. Its multiple descriptors of cases where efforts can be terminated make it complex to apply in the field. Here we proposed a simplified rule and evaluated its predictive performance. Methods We analysed Utstein registry data for 2009–2013 from a Taipei emergency medical service to test a simplified TOR rule that comprises two criteria: blunt trauma injury and the presence of asystole. Enrolees were adults (≥18 years) with TCPA. The predicted outcome was in-hospital death. We compared the areas under the curve (AUC) of the simple rule with each of four descriptors in the guidelines and with a combination of all four to assess their discriminatory ability. Test characteristics were calculated to assess predictive performance. Results A total of 893 TCPA cases were included. Blunt trauma occurred in 459 (51.4%) cases and asystole in 384 (43.0%). In-hospital mortality was 854 (95.6%) cases. The simplified TOR rule had greater discriminatory ability (AUC 0.683, 95% CI 0.618 to 0.747) compared with any single descriptor in the 2003 guidelines (range of AUC: 0.506–0.616) although the AUC was similar when all four were combined (AUC 0.695, 95% CI 0.615 to 0.775). The specificity of the simplified rule was 100% (95% CI 88.8% to 100%) and positive predictive value 100% (95% CI 96.8% to 100%). The false positive value, false negative value and decreased rate of unnecessary transport were 0% (95% CI 0% to 3.2%), 94.8% (95% CI 92.9% to 96.2%) and 16.4% (95% CI 14.1% to 19.1%), respectively. Conclusions The simplified TOR rule appears to accurately predict non-survivors in adults with TCPA in the prehospital setting.

The effect of the number and level of emergency medical technicians on patient outcomes following out of hospital cardiac arrest in Taipei

AIM The effect of the number and level of on-scene emergency medical technicians (EMTs) on the outcomes of patients with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) remains unclear. We aimed to test the association between the number and level of EMTs and the outcomes of patients with OHCA. METHODS We analysed Utstein-based registry data on OHCA in Taipei from 2011 to 2015. The eligible patients were adults, aged ≥20 years, with non-traumatic OHCA who underwent resuscitation attempts. The exposures were the total number of EMTs or the EMT-Paramedic (EMT-P) ratio >50%. The outcome of interest was survival to discharge. RESULTS During study period, total 8262 OHCA cases were included, of which 1085 (13.1%) were approached by crews with an EMT-P ratio >50%. While an increase in the number of EMTs on-scene was not associated with better chances of survival (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] 0.98, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.89-1.08), an EMT-P ratio >50% was significantly associated with improved outcome (aOR 1.36, 95% CI 1.06-1.76). Subgroup analyses showed that EMT-P >50% significantly benefited survival in witnessed OHCA cases with non-shockable rhythm (aOR 1.69, 95% CI 1.01-2.58). Survival was the highest among cases seen by four EMTs with an EMT-P ratio >50% (aOR 2.54, 95% CI 1.43-4.50). CONCLUSION An on-scene EMT-P ratio >50% was associated with improved survival to discharge of OHCA cases, especially in those with witnessed, non-shockable rhythm. The presence of four EMTs with an EMT-P ratio >50% at the scene of OHCA was associated with the best outcome.

Public knowledge, attitudes and willingness regarding bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation: A nationwide survey in Taiwan

BACKGROUND A low bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) rate is one of the factors associated with low cardiac arrest survival. This study aimed to assess knowledge, attitudes, and willingness towards performing CPR and the barriers for implementation of bystander-initiated CPR. METHODS Telephone interviews were conducted using an author-designed and validated structured questionnaire in Taiwan. After obtaining a stratified random sample from the census, the results were weighted to match population data. The factors affecting bystander-initiated CPR were analysed using logistic regression. RESULTS Of the 1073 respondents, half of them stated that they knew how to perform CPR correctly, although 86.7% indicated a willingness to perform CPR on strangers. The barriers to CPR performance reported by the respondents included fear of legal consequences (44%) and concern about harming patients (36.5%). Most participants expressed a willingness to attend only an hour-long CPR course. Respondents who were less likely to indicate a willingness to perform CPR were female, healthcare providers, those who had no cohabiting family members older than 65 years, those who had a history of a stroke, and those who expressed a negative attitude toward CPR. CONCLUSION The expressed willingness to perform bystander CPR was high if the respondents possessed the required skills. Attempts should be made to recruit potential bystanders for CPR courses or education, targeting those respondent subgroups less likely to express willingness to perform CPR. The reason for lower bystander CPR willingness among healthcare providers deserves further investigation.

Basic life support equipped with automated external defibrillator may not be categorized the same as traditional basic life support in meta-analysis.

We read with great interests the meta-analysis reported by akalos et al.1 comparing patient survival with advanced life suport (ALS) versus basic life support (BLS) in the pre-hospital setting nd would like to present our opinions on its appropriateness for on-traumatic cardiac arrest. An emergency medical services (EMS) system that provides BLS quipped with rapid defibrillation (BLS-D with automated exteral defibrillator) should not be placed in the same category as an MS that provides BLS without a defibrillation capacity. Based on he contribution of early defibrillation to patient outcomes, a mixure of the two may result in misclassification and measurement ias. We recently presented as an abstract, several years of data omparing ALS versus BLS-D,2 and previously reported a one-year ata analysis.3 Including ours, there were only three large commuity studies comparing ALS versus BLS-D in a modern EMS.4,5 In he meta-analysis reported by Bakalos et al., all these three studes were mixed with other earlier studies that compared ALS with raditional BLS without defibrillation capability. In addition, among the other six studies out of the final nine ncluded in the meta-analysis (Table 3 in the article)1: Olasveengen t al. compared ALS with physicians versus ALS without physicians, nd not ALS versus BLS; Soo et al. described their paramedics as LS level but that was not adequately counted as ALS data in the eta-analysis; Mitchell et al. compared an EMS consisting of BLS/ALS/physician with another EMS of BLS-D/ALS, not ALS versus LS; Dickson et al. compared one-year data of ALS with physicians ersus ALS without physicians, not ALS versus BLS. Therefore, the o-called BLS data listed in Table 3 of the article is a mixture of traitional BLS, BLS-D, and even different forms of ALS, and again meaurement bias might occur. We suggest that the numerators (numer of survivors at hospital discharge) and the denominators (numer of patients receiving ALS or BLS care) in Table 3 be re-evaluated.