Cardiac arrest and elderly

BACKGROUND: Timely bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation is the key to improving the survival rate of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. Civil servants are potential bystander CPR providers. This study aimed to explore civil servants' willingness to implement CPR in Chongqing, identify the influencing factors and mechanisms affecting civil servants' willingness to perform CPR, and then seek countermeasures to improve civil servants' willingness to implement CPR. METHODS: We introduced the theory of perceived risk into the theory of planned behavior, developed a 7-point Likert scale based on the extended theory of planned behavior, and conducted a questionnaire survey on civil servants in Chongqing, China...

PURPOSE: This study aimed to determine the percentage of missed opportunities (MOs) to identify and treat older adults presenting with palliative care (PC) needs at one emergency department (ED). The secondary objective was to determine the rate of treatment interventions regardless of whether the patients received a PC plan as well as the direct cost of treatment. PATIENTS AND METHODS: In this retrospective study, PC need was determined using broad and narrow criteria...

Cardiology and all its subspecialties continue to push the envelope in developing new treatment strategies for a wide variety of diseases. After screening more than 1300 articles, we highlight a selection of important cardiology articles published in 2023. Starting with prevention, we note articles that look at the effect of semaglutide in patients with obesity as well as a first-in-class drug, bempedoic acid, on cardiovascular outcomes. We have also examined new evidence comparing conservative management with invasive management of frail, older patients with non-ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (NSTEMI)...

Squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) is the second leading form of skin cancer. In the elderly population, surgery may carry more risk and significant morbidity in comparison to less invasive forms of treatment. This case report describes the successful use of intralesional 5-fluorouracil (IL5-FU) to treat cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (cSCC). A 98-year-old white woman presented in early May 2017 with a 3.5-cm rapidly growing crusted nodule on her left proximal-lateral arm. She had a past medical history of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, atrial fibrillation, and heart failure...

BACKGROUND: With the increasing number of elderly individuals worldwide, a greater number of people aged 80 years and older sustain fragility fracture due to osteopenia and osteoporosis. METHODS: This retrospective study included 158 older adults, with a median age of 85 (range: 80-99) years, who sustained hip fragility fracture and who underwent surgery. The patients were divided into two groups, one including patients who joined the post-acute care (PAC) program after surgery and another comprising patients who did not...

BACKGROUND: Elderly hospitalized patients often have dysphagia, which can cause a variety of complications, the most common being aspiration. Early detection and timely treatment by nurses are needed in the clinic. OBJECTIVE: To assess the effect of the situational simulation teaching method in respiratory and cardiac arrest induced by aspiration in elderly patients. DESIGN: This was a retrospective study. SETTING: This study was performed in the Department of Geriatrics, The Third Hospital of Hebei Medical University...

BACKGROUND: Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) increases cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk irrespective of other risk factors. However, large-scale cardiovascular sex and race differences are poorly understood. AIM: To investigate the relationship between NAFLD and major cardiovascular and cerebrovascular events (MACCE) in subgroups using a nationally representative United States inpatient sample. METHODS: We examined National Inpatient Sample (2019) to identify adult hospitalizations with NAFLD by age, sex, and race using ICD-10-CM codes...

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the factors that influence the return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC) in elderly patients suffering from out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA). METHODS: A retrospective study was used to collect the clinical data of OHCA patients admitted to the emergency center of Zhengzhou People's Hospital from July 2016 to July 2019 based on the pre-hospital emergency database of Utstein model. Patients' gender, age, cardiac arrest (CA) etiology, presence or absence of bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), emergency response time, initial cardiac rhythm, ventilation method, use of epinephrine, defibrillation and ROSC were included...

Worldwide stroke is the second leading cause of death and the third leading cause of death and disability combined. The estimated global economic burden by stroke is over US$891 billion per year. Within three decades (1990-2019), the incidence increased by 70%, deaths by 43%, prevalence by 102%, and DALYs by 143%. Of over 100 million people affected by stroke, about 76% are ischemic stroke (IS) patients recorded worldwide. Contextually, ischemic stroke moves into particular focus of multi-professional groups including researchers, healthcare industry, economists, and policy-makers...

Limited clinical intervention studies highlight the absence of evidence-based international guidelines for effectively managing post-tuberculosis lung disease, emphasizing bronchiectasis. The aim of this study was to describe a case of left pneumonectomy for severe post-tuberculosis cystic bronchiectasis and to provide a review of the post-surgical mortality rate, complications, survival rate, and the patient's quality of life following the pneumonectomy procedure. A 36-year-old Indonesian male smoker presented with worsening breathing difficulties and fever...

AIM: Long-term cognitive decline after out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) is still poorly understood. This study describes long-term observer-reported cognitive decline among Danish OHCA survivors, including differences in years since the event, and investigates characteristics and self-reported outcomes associated with observer-reported cognitive decline. METHODS: Adults who survived an OHCA from 2016 to 2019, and their relatives, completed the national DANish Cardiac Arrest Survivorship survey...

BACKGROUND: An elevated cardiac troponin concentration is a prognostic factor for perioperative cardiac morbidity and mortality. In elderly patients undergoing emergency abdominal surgery, frailty is a recognized risk factor, but little is known about the prognostic value of cardiac troponin in these vulnerable patients. Therefore, we investigated the prognostic significance of elevated high-sensitivity cardiac troponin T (hs-cTnT) concentration and frailty in a cohort of elderly patients undergoing emergency abdominal surgery...

Sugammadex has transformed clinical practice by enabling the rapid reversal of rocuronium-induced neuromuscular block (NMB) at any depth. We present a case of cardiac arrest following postoperative recurarization despite the sugammadex-induced transient reversal of NMB. Despite its proven clinical reliability, this case highlights the often overlooked aspects that must be considered when using this drug. An 84-year-old male patient was scheduled for a laparoscopic partial gastrectomy for gastric cancer...

BACKGROUND: Previous studies showed that the prognosis for severe trauma patients is better after transport to trauma centers compared to non-trauma centers. However, the benefit from transport to trauma centers may differ according to age group. The aim of this study was to compare the effects of transport to trauma centers on survival outcomes in different age groups among severe trauma patients in Korea. METHODS: Cross-sectional study using Korean national emergency medical service (EMS) based severe trauma registry in 2018-2019 was conducted...

Takotsubo syndrome occurs predominantly in women and is usually preceded by acute emotional and/or physical stress. Patients commonly present with chest pain and/or dyspnea. Syncope or out-of-hospital cardiac arrest is a rare presentation. We report an unusual case of takotsubo syndrome in an elderly patient who presented with left facial droop, slurred speech, and syncopal episode. Initial presumed diagnosis was an ischemic stroke/transient ischemic attack. However, the patient was then treated for acute myocardial ischemia/infarction based on abnormal electrocardiogram, elevated cardiac troponin, and unremarkable neurological workup...

OBJECTIVES: With more elderly presenting with Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrests (OHCAs) globally, neurologically intact survival (NIS) should be the aim of resuscitation. We aimed to study the trend of OHCA amongst elderly in a large Asian registry to identify if age is independently associated with NIS and factors associated with NIS. METHODS: All adult OHCAs aged ≥18 years attended by emergency medical services (EMS) from April 2010 to December 2019 in Singapore was extracted from the Pan-Asian Resuscitation Outcomes Study (PAROS) registry...

In order to analyze the clinical characteristics of death cases in the oral emergency department of the stomatological hospital, and to improve the first aid technique before and in hospitals, we collected the clinical data of death cases in the Department of Oral Emergency in Peking University School and Hospital of Stomatology from January 2010 to January 2023 for retrospective analysis. General cha-racteristics, such as the patients' gender, age, chief complaint, maxillofacial diseases, systemic underlying diseases, rescue situation, cause of death and seasonal distribution of death were summarized...

To understand the current status of public knowledge of automated external defibrillator (AED) and their willingness to use public AED in Hubei Province, along with the influencing factors. A self-designed questionnaire was used for convenience sampling of the public in Hubei Province. The questionnaire consists of three parts: basic information, AED knowledge questions, and willingness to use public AED and influencing factors. Data was collected between May 2022 and March 2023. A total of 1561 valid questionnaires were collected from 1602 distributed...

BACKGROUND: Abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) is a life-threatening condition characterized by the weakening and dilation of the abdominal aorta. AAA primarily affects men, smokers, and the elderly, with rupture being a fatal complication. While point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) is valuable in diagnosing AAA, the role of using pocket-sized ultrasound in a low resource setting remains less explored. This case report presents a unique instance of a suspected ruptured AAA diagnosed using pocket-sized ultrasound in an emergency department (ED) situated in a low resource setting where ultrasound machines are absent, and emergency physicians lack proficiency in ultrasound usage...

RATIONALE: Green inclusions (GI) are distinct morphological features found in phagocytic cells like neutrophils and monocytes. These intracellular structures exhibit bright green color with unclear boundaries, and their origin and clinical significance are still not fully understood. GI carriers, often middle-aged to elderly with liver dysfunction, face higher mortality rates, earning them the nickname "inclusions of death." This report presents a rare GI-related pediatric case, demonstrating a favorable response to blood purification therapy...