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Out-of-hospital pediatric cardiac arrest survival remains poor, similar to adults
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Survival rates from out-of-hospital cardiac arrest in children are still low, but certain characteristics such as witnessed arrest, public location and shockable rhythm improve outcomes, researchers reported at Cardiology 2016, the 19th Annual Update on Pediatric and Congenital Cardiovascular Disease.
Researchers at the Cleveland Clinic Children’s Hospital reviewed data from 1,239 pediatric patients enrolled in CARES. All of the patients (63.3% men; 40% white; median age, 15 years) had experienced an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest between 2005 and 2013.
The primary objective was to determine whether certain patient or neighborhood characteristics were associated with better survival. Of the 1,239 patients, 14.3% survived the out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. Automated external defibrillator was used on 27% of the patients, and 78.8% of all patients had a nonshockable rhythm.
Patients who survived were older (P < .001) and more likely to have a witnessed arrest (P < .001) in a public location (P < .001) than those patients who died. Those who survived also were more likely to have an AED on site (P < .001) and less likely to live in a black neighborhood (P = .004), according to the abstract.
In the adjusted multivariable model, witnessed arrest (OR = 2.4; 95% CI, 1.6-3.6), public location (OR = 1.9; 95% CI, 1.2-2.9) and shockable rhythm (OR = 6.5; 95% CI, 4.3-9.9) were all predictors of survival. Living in a white neighborhood was also associated with improved survival rates (OR = 1.2; 95% CI, 1.02-1.4), according to the abstract.
“Survival rate from out-of-hospital cardiac arrest in the pediatric cohort is comparable to adults and remains poor,” the researchers wrote. “Witnessed arrest, public location and shockable rhythm are associated with better survival.” – by Tracey Romero
Reference:
El Assaad I, et al. Abstract 223. Presented at: Cardiology 2016, the 19th Annual Update on Pediatric and Congenital Cardiovascular Disease; Feb. 24-28, 2016; Orlando, Fla.
Disclosure: Cardiology Today could not obtain relevant financial disclosures.