Prehospital rapid-sequence intubation--what does the evidence show? Proceedings from the 2004 National Association of EMS Physicians annual meeting.

This article is a summary of the proceedings from a panel presentation and discussion ‘‘Prehospital Rapidsequence Intubation—What Does the Evidence Show?’’ presented at the National Association of EMS Physicians (NAEMSP) annual meeting, Tucson, Arizona, in January 2004. The presenters, Henry E. Wang, MD, MPH, Daniel P. Davis, MD, and Marvin A. Wayne, MD, are nationally recognized leaders in the research and practice of prehospital endotracheal intubation (ETI) and rapidsequence intubation (RSI). In the opening section, ‘‘Prehospital RSI—Why Consider It At All?’’ Dr. Wang presented an in-depth review of the scientific evidence behind commonly cited reasons for prehospital RSI. Dr. Davis followed with ‘‘Pre-hospital RSI—Does It Make a Difference?’’ in which he discussed prior and current evidence linking this prehospital intervention to patient outcomes, including data from the recent San Diego RSI trial. Finally, in ‘‘Bellingham, Washington— A Prehospital RSI Success Story,’’