In out-of-hospital cardiac arrest, is the positioning of victims by bystanders adequate for CPR? A cohort study.

Objectives: Outcome from out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) highly depends on bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) with high-quality chest compressions (CCs). Precondition is a supine position of the victim on a firm surface. Until now, no study has systematically analysed whether bystanders of OHCA apply appropriate positions to victims and whether the position is associated with a particular outcome.

[When to terminate resuscitation in adults?].

Resuscitation in cardiac arrest rarely results in survival with a good neurologic outcome. It is therefore a common problem to decide when resuscitation should not be initiated or an ongoing attempt has to be terminated. Resuscitation attempts should be withheld or terminated if there is a do not resuscitate order (DNR), if resuscitation is not in accordance with the presumptive will of the patient or does not have a chance to allow the patient to continue an independent living.

[Role of coronary intervention after successful cardiopulmonary resuscitation].

Immediate coronary angiography and intervention in suitable stenoses in patients resuscitated from cardiac arrest of presumed coronary origin and return of spontaneous circulation is widely established in interventional centers. The procedure is based on the analogy of positive results achieved with coronary intervention in many forms of acute coronary syndromes on the one hand and otherwise from registries showing promising data from coronary intervention of resuscitated patients. Results from randomized controlled studies, however, are not yet available.

[The supraglottic airway in the prehospital setting].

The supraglottic airway (SGA) is increasingly considered as a more effective alternative for emergency ventilation compared to bag mask ventilation and is propagated as an "easily" manageable method, compared to endotracheal intubation especially under the often adverse out-of-hospital conditions. Since the skill can easily be acquired during mannequin training, more and more rescue services train their personnel in the use of SGA devices and allow or even recommend their application also by nonphysicians. This recommendation, however, is not unequivocally supported by properly designed and conducted trials.

Double-blind, randomized, prospective comparison of loading doses of 600 mg clopidogrel versus 60 mg prasugrel in patients with acute ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction scheduled for primary percutaneous intervention: the ETAMI trial (early thienopyridine treatment to improve primary PCI in patients with acute myocardial infarction).

Objectives: This study compared the timing of onset of antiplatelet action after treatment with clopidogrel and prasugrel at first medical contact in patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) scheduled for primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PPCI).

Background: Little is known about the timing of onset of antiplatelet action after a pre-percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) loading dose of clopidogrel or prasugrel in patients with STEMI.

Methods: This double-blind, prospective study randomized 62 patients with STEMI scheduled for PPCI in the ambulance or the emergency department to 60 mg prasugrel (n = 31) or 600 mg clopidogrel (n = 31).

[Prognostic assessment as the basis for limiting therapy in unconscious patients after cardiopulmonary resuscitation].

Background: The prognosis of patients who have been resuscitated after cardiac arrest is still unfavourable and long-term results have only slightly improved. As a consequence, intensivists are frequently confronted with the question of limiting active therapeutic efforts for patients in prolonged coma. The history of the patient and circumstances of the resuscitation are of limited value with regard to reliable decisions.

Official lay basic life support courses in Germany: is delivered content up to date with the guidelines? An observational study.

Background And Objectives: Educating the lay public in basic life support (BLS) is a cornerstone to improving bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) rates. In Germany, the official rescue organisations deliver accredited courses based on International Liaison Committee on Resuscitation (ILCOR) guidelines to up to 1 million participants every year. However, it is unknown how these courses are delivered in reality.

[Differentiated antiplatelet therapy for acute coronary syndromes].

Dual antiplatelet therapy is the cornerstone of maintenance medication following invasive treatment of patients with acute coronary syndromes (ST elevation myocardial infarction, non-ST elevation myocardial infarction, unstable angina). Over the last decade, P2Y12 inhibition in addition to low-dose acetylsalicylic acid has been intensively debated. The debate was enriched by the results of the large phase III clinical trials for prasugrel (TRITON) and ticagrelor (PLATO) compared to clopidogrel in patients with acute coronary syndromes.

Impact of hypertension on distal embolization, myocardial perfusion, and mortality in patients with ST segment elevation myocardial infarction undergoing primary angioplasty.

Hypertension is a well-known risk factor for atherosclerosis. However, data on the impact of hypertension in patients with ST elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) are inconsistent and mainly related to studies performed in the thrombolytic era, with very few data on patients undergoing primary angioplasty. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the impact of hypertension on distal embolization, myocardial perfusion, and mortality in patients with STEMI undergoing primary percutaneous coronary intervention.

Old age and chronic disease: is the emergency medical system the appropriate provider for the elderly?

Objective: The use of emergency medical services increases with the age of patients. Some care providers hold on to the prejudice that these alarms are unnecessary or of a lower importance. We assessed the relation of age and age-dependent emergency characteristics, taking into consideration the ratings of emergency physicians on whether or not emergency cases were considered truly in need of emergency physician attendance.

Impact of multivessel disease on myocardial perfusion and survival among patients undergoing primary percutaneous coronary intervention with glycoprotein IIb/IIIa inhibitors.

Background: Although primary angioplasty achieves thrombolysis in myocardial infarction (TIMI) 3 flow in most patients with ST-elevation myocardial infarction, epicardial recanalization does not guarantee optimal perfusion in a large proportion of patients. The influence of multivessel disease on myocardial reperfusion and survival after primary angioplasty has not been extensively investigated.

Aim: To evaluate the impact of multivessel disease on myocardial perfusion and survival in a large cohort of patients with ST-elevation myocardial infarction treated with angioplasty and glycoprotein (GP) IIb/IIIa inhibitors.

Impact of advanced age on myocardial perfusion, distal embolization, and mortality patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction treated by primary angioplasty and glycoprotein IIb-IIIa inhibitors.

Despite mechanical reperfusion, the outcome is still unsatisfactory in elderly patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). The vast majority of studies have been conducted without extensive use of glycoprotein (Gp) IIb-IIIa inhibitors, which have been associated with improved perfusion and survival. Thus the aim of the current study was to evaluate the impact of age on the angiographic and clinical outcome patients with STEMI undergoing primary angioplasty with Gp IIb-IIIa inhibitors.

Fibrinolysis or primary PCI in ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction.

Background: It is not known whether prehospital fibrinolysis, coupled with timely coronary angiography, provides a clinical outcome similar to that with primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) early after acute ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI).

Methods: Among 1892 patients with STEMI who presented within 3 hours after symptom onset and who were unable to undergo primary PCI within 1 hour, patients were randomly assigned to undergo either primary PCI or fibrinolytic therapy with bolus tenecteplase (amended to half dose in patients ≥75 years of age), clopidogrel, and enoxaparin before transport to a PCI-capable hospital. Emergency coronary angiography was performed if fibrinolysis failed; otherwise, angiography was performed 6 to 24 hours after randomization.

Time-related impact of distal embolisation on myocardial perfusion and survival among patients undergoing primary angioplasty with glycoprotein IIb-IIIa inhibitors: insights from the EGYPT cooperation.

Aims: Considerable interest has been focused in recent years on the role of distal embolisation as a major determinant of impaired reperfusion after primary angioplasty for STEMI. The aim of the current study was to evaluate in a large cohort of STEMI patients undergoing primary angioplasty with glycoprotein (Gp) IIb-IIIa inhibitors, whether the impact of distal embolisation on myocardial perfusion and survival may depend on time-to-treatment.

Methods And Results: Our population is represented by 1,182 patients undergoing primary angioplasty for STEMI included in the EGYPT database.

[Prehospital cardiac arrest. Therapeutic hypothermia in adults].

Therapeutic hypothermia is one of the few advances in recent years that has improved survival and neurological outcome of survivors of cardiac arrest. Therapeutic hypothermia is part of current guidelines and, therefore, should be part of the routine procedure in postresuscitation care of patients still comatose after primarily successful resuscitation. Early induction of hypothermia may be achieved even in the prehospital setting with different cooling techniques which, however, are less suitable to maintain a constant temperature and additionally do not allow precisely controlled re-warming.

Fate of patients with prehospital resuscitation for ST-elevation myocardial infarction and a high rate of early reperfusion therapy (results from the PREMIR [Prehospital Myocardial Infarction Registry]).

Patients with acute ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) needing prehospital cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) have a very high adverse-event rate. However, little is known about the fate of these patients and predictors of mortality in the era of early reperfusion therapy. From March 2003 through December 2004, 2,317 patients with prehospital diagnosed STEMI were enrolled in the Prehospital Myocardial Infarction Registry.

Efficacy and safety of a high loading dose of clopidogrel administered prehospitally to improve primary percutaneous coronary intervention in acute myocardial infarction: the randomized CIPAMI trial.

Objectives: To compare a loading dose of 600 mg clopidogrel given in the prehospital phase versus clopidogrel administered only after the diagnostic angiogram in patients with STEMI scheduled for primary PCI.

Background: The optimal time and dose for the initiation of clopidogrel therapy in patients with STEMI scheduled for primary PCI has not been studied in prospective randomized trials.

Methods: The primary efficacy endpoint was the TIMI 2/3 patency of the infarct-related artery in the diagnostic angiography immediately prior to PCI.

Expertise in prehospital endotracheal intubation by emergency medicine physicians-Comparing 'proficient performers' and 'experts'.

Background: Training requirements to perform safe prehospital endotracheal intubation (ETI) are not clearly known. This study aimed to determine differences in ETI performance between 'proficient performers' and 'experts' according to the Dreyfus & Dreyfus framework of expertise. As a model for 'proficient performers' EMS physicians with a clinical background in internal medicine were compared to EMS physicians with a background in anaesthesiology as a model for 'experts'.