Is Prehospital Advanced Life Support Harmful?

Is Prehospital Advanced Life Support Harmful?

E year in the United States, approximately 21 million persons call 911, are evaluated by emergency medical services (EMS), and are transported to emergency departments (EDs) for potential medical emergencies (1). Of these, approximately 35% are related to injuries or chest, respiratory, or neurologic symptoms and more than one third of all patients aged 65 years or older are transported to the ...

Is advanced life support better than basic life support in prehospital care? A systematic review

BACKGROUND Prehospital care is classified into ALS- (advanced life support) and BLS- (basic life support) levels according to the methods used. ALS-level prehospital care uses invasive methods, such as intravenous fluids, medications and intubation. However, the effectiveness of ALS care compared to BLS has been questionable. AIM The aim of this systematic review is to compare the effectivene...

Factors impacting on quality of prehospital advanced cardiac life support

The Ontario Prehospital Advanced Life Support (OPALS) Study: rationale and methodology for cardiac arrest patients.

The Ontario Prehospital Advanced Life Support Study represents the largest prehospital study yet conducted, worldwide. This study will involve more than 25,000 cardiac arrest, trauma, and critically ill patients over an 8-year period. The study will evaluate the incremental benefit of rapid defibrillation and prehospital Advanced Cardiac Life Support measures for cardiac arrest survival and the...

Prehospital advanced trauma life support: how should we manage the airway, and who should do it?

Adequate oxygenation at all times is of paramount importance to the critically injured patient to avoid secondary damage. The role of endotracheal intubation in out-of-hospital advanced trauma life support, however, remains controversial. Initiated by a recent observational study, this commentary discusses risks and benefits associated with prehospital intubation, the required personnel and tra...