Increased survival for resuscitated Utstein-comparator group patients conveyed directly to cardiac arrest centres in a large rural and suburban population in England.

Aim: The cohort of patients in which cardiac arrest centres (CAC) in rural and suburban populations confer the greatest survival benefit remains unclear. The aim of this study was to assess whether the transfer of resuscitated Utstein-comparator out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) patients direct to a CAC was associated with improved survival to hospital discharge compared to patients conveyed to non-specialist centres.

Methods: A consecutive sample of adult (≥18 years old) Utstein-comparator patients (witnessed collapse and initial shockable rhythm) were included from the East of England Ambulance Service NHS Trust Utstein resuscitation registry; 2018-2022. Logistic regression was used to compare survival to discharge in patients transported to CACs compared with patients transported to non-specialist centres.

Results: During the study period, resuscitation was attempted in 18,276 OHCA patients. N = 2448 (13.4%) met the Utstein-comparator definition and 1151 patients were included in the final analysis; per protocol. Survival was greater for patients conveyed directly to a CAC (n = 768, 60.7%) compared to non-specialist centres (n = 383, 47.3%); adjusted OR 1.44 (95%CI 1.07-1.94),p = 0.017. Amongst the centres analysed in this study, there was significant inter-hospital variability in survival between CACs (p = 0.017). There was no association between patient volume and survival (p = 0.850).

Conclusion: Direct transport to a cardiac arrest centre was associated with a 44% increase in the odds of survival compared to conveyance to a non-specialist centre for resuscitated adult patients presenting with witnessed collapse and initial shockable OHCA rhythm.