Impact of epinephrine administration frequency in out-of-hospital cardiac arrest patients: a retrospective analysis in a tertiary hospital setting

The outcomes of cardiopulmonary resuscitation and their predictors during the coronavirus 2019 pandemic in Iran

BACKGROUND

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) can negatively affect different healthcare-related outcomes. Nonetheless, there is limited information about its effects on different healthcare-related outcomes. This study aimed at evaluating the outcomes of cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and their predictors during the COVID-19 pandemic in Iran.

METHODS

This cross-sectional study was conducted on 1253 patients who had undergone CPR in the emergency wards of teaching hospitals in the west of Iran from the beginning of the first wave to the end of the third epidemic wave of COVID-19 in Iran, between February 20, 2020, and January 20, 2021. Data were collected using the National CPR Documentation Forms developed based on the Utstein Style and routinely used for all patients with cardiac arrest (CA). The SPSS (v. 20.0) program was used to analyze the data through the Chi-square, Fisher's exact, and Mann-Whitney U tests and logistic regression analysis.

RESULTS

Participants' age mean was 64.62 ± 17.54 years. Age mean among participants with COVID-19 was eight years more than other participants. Most participants were male (64.09%) and had at least one underlying disease (64.99%). The total rates of the return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC) and CPR-discharge survival were respectively 15.3% and 3.8% among all participants, 20.25% and 5.17% among participants without COVID-19, and 8.96% and 2.04% among participants with COVID-19. The significant predictors of ROSC were age, affliction by COVID-19, affliction by underlying diseases, baseline rhythm, delay in epinephrine administration, and epinephrine administration time interval, while the significant predictors of CPR-discharge survival were age and baseline rhythm.

CONCLUSIONS

The total rates of ROSC and CPR-discharge survival were respectively 15.3% and 3.8% among all participants. The rates of ROSC and CPR to discharge survival among patients without COVID-19 are respectively 2.26 and 2.53 times more than the rates among patients with COVID-19.

How Epinephrine Administration Interval Impacts the Outcomes of Resuscitation during Adult Cardiac Arrest: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Current guidelines for treating cardiac arrest recommend administering 1 mg of epinephrine every 3−5 min. However, this interval is based solely on expert opinion. We aimed to investigate the impact of the epinephrine administration interval (EAI) on resuscitation outcomes in adults with cardiac arrest. We systematically reviewed the PubMed, EMBASE, and Scopus databases. We included studies comparing different EAIs in adult cardiac arrest patients with reported neurological outcomes. Pooled estimates were calculated using the IVhet meta-analysis, and the heterogeneities were assessed using Q and I2 statistics. We evaluated the study risk of bias and overall quality using validated bias assessment tools. Three studies were included. All were classified as “good quality” studies. Only two reported the primary outcome. Compared with a recommended EAI of 3−5 min, a favorable neurological outcome was not significantly different in patients with the other frequencies: for <3 min, odds ratio (OR) 1.93 (95% CI: 0.82−4.54); for >5 min, OR 1.01 (95% CI: 0.55−1.87). For survival to hospital discharge, administering epinephrine for less than 3 min was not associated with a good outcome (OR 1.66, 95% CI: 0.89−3.10). Moreover, EAI of >5 min did not pose a benefit (OR 0.87, 95% CI: 0.68−1.11). Our review showed that EAI during CPR was not associated with better hospital outcomes. Further clinical trials are necessary to determine the optimal dosing interval for epinephrine in adults with cardiac arrest.

Effect of Prehospital Epinephrine Use on Survival from Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest and on Emergency Medical Services

This study was to identify the effect of epinephrine on the survival of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) patients and changes in prehospital emergency medical services (EMSs) after the introduction of prehospital epinephrine use by EMS providers. This was a retrospective observational study comparing two groups (epinephrine group and norepinephrine group). We used propensity score matching of the two groups and identified the association between outcome variables regarding survival and epinephrine use, controlling for confounding factors. The epinephrine group was 339 patients of a total 1943 study population. The survival-to-discharge rate and OR (95% CI) of the epinephrine group were 5.0% (p = 0.215) and 0.72 (0.43–1.21) in the total patient population and 4.7% (p = 0.699) and 1.15 (0.55–2.43) in the 1:1 propensity-matched population. The epinephrine group received more mechanical chest compression and had longer EMS response times and scene times than the norepinephrine group. Mechanical chest compression was a negative prognostic factor for survival to discharge and favorable neurological outcomes in the epinephrine group. The introduction of prehospital epinephrine use in OHCA patients yielded no evidence of improvement in survival to discharge and favorable neurological outcomes and adversely affected the practice of EMS providers, exacerbating the factors negatively associated with survival from OHCA.

Out of Hospital Cardiac Arrest: Saudi Red Crescent Experience Throughout COVID-19 Era

PURPOSE

The quality of resuscitation for out hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) during the COVID-19 era could be affected. We aim to describe prehospital healthcare providers' resuscitative efforts for OHCA cases and their definitive outcomes.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

This retrospective cross-sectional study included all OHCA cases between April and June 2021 across all regions in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA). Demographic variables, response times, CPR providers, initial rhythm, use of AED/Defibrillator, medical interventions, ROSC data, and dispatch codes were extracted from a central electronic platform.

RESULTS

A total of 1307 OHCA cases were included in this study, males constituted 65% and 42% were ≥65 years. Although the median response time to initiate CPR was 13 min, 11% of OHCA cases had a response time between 0 and 6 min. About 75% of CPR was provided on scene by BLS units, 78% of OHCA cases had asystole as their initial rhythm, an AED/Defibrillator was used more than 90% of the time for pulseless VT/VF rhythm, and ROSC was achieved in 8% of OHCA patients.

CONCLUSION

During the COVID-19 pandemic, maintaining resuscitative efforts for OHCA continues in KSA. Closing knowledge gaps in the community and a better description of OHCA for the dispatcher could guide dispatch-assisted CPR and minimize OHCA response times.