Michael Colquhoun

Out-of-hospital cardiac arrest in schools. A systematic review

BACKGROUND Out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) in children and adolescents is rare, with a minority of cases occurring at school. When OHCA does occur at school it is more likely to affect an adult than a student. Developing comprehensive strategies to treat cardiac arrest occurring at schools would be helped by accurate data regarding its epidemiology. METHODS A systematic review was undertaken. An electronic search strategy of MEDLINE and EMBASE databases was devised and relevant papers reporting data on school-based OHCA incidence and/or outcome in both adults and children were identified. Further articles were obtained from the bibliographies of these papers and from related articles. RESULTS Nine studies were included in the systematic review. Cardiac arrest incidence was one per 23.8-284.1 schools per year. Cardiac arrest incidence amongst students, reported in some studies, was 0.17-4.4 per 100,000 students per year. Studies also reported, although not universally, rates of witnessed OHCA (25.0-97.2%), VF (57.4-67.6%), bystander CPR (25.0-94.4%) and automated external defibrillator (AED) use (23.4-91.5%). Survival to hospital discharge or at one month was between 31.9% and 71.2%. CONCLUSION Cardiac arrest in schools is rare, and more likely to occur in adults than children. Outcomes are better than OHCA occurring at other locations, probably due to the high proportion of witnessed arrests and high rates of bystander CPR. It is likely that school-based AEDs will rarely be needed, but have the potential to make a dramatic impact on outcome.

PP13 New signs to encourage the use of automated external defibrillators by the lay public

Background Public Access Defibrillation – the use of Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs) by lay bystanders before the arrival of Emergency Medical Services – is an important strategy in delivering prompt defibrillation to victims of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest and can greatly improve survival rates. Such public-access AEDs are used rarely: one barrier might be poor understanding and content of current signage to indicate their presence. The aim of this project was to develop a sign, with public consultation, that better indicated the function of an AED and an associated poster to encourage its use. Methods Two public surveys were undertaken, in July and December 2015, to investigate perceptions of the current AED location sign recommended for use in the UK and to produce an improved location sign and associated information poster. Results 1895 and 2115 respondents to the surveys. Fewer than half (47.9%, 895/1870) understood what the current location sign indicated. One of four design options for a location sign best explained the indication for (preferred by 56.0%, 1023/1828) and best encouraged the use of a public AED (51.8%, 946/1828). 83.5% (1766/2115) preferred an illustration of a stylised heart trace to the lightning bolt used at present. From five wording options, ‘Defibrillator – Heart Restarter’ was the most popular (29.4%, 622/2115). An associated poster was developed using design features from the new location sign, findings from the surveys and expert group input regarding its content. Conclusions This is the first time that public consultation has been used to design a public AED location sign. Effective signage has the potential to help break down the barriers to more widespread use of AEDs in public places.