Paramedic PapersHome Daily scans 25 September 2026
Daily scan
Paramedic research, 25 September 2026
7 new paramedic and prehospital papers from the 25 September 2026 scan.
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Post-ROSC PaCO2 doesn't predict paediatric OHCA outcome
Japanese multicentre registry study of 215 paediatric OHCA patients testing whether the first post-ROSC PaCO2 category predicts 30-day outcomes — no clear association with favourable neurologic outcome or survival for either hypocapnia (aOR 0.83) or hypercapnia (aOR 1.46), though estimates were imprecise with wide confidence intervals.
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SGA vs intubation in OHCA: ROSC lower with SGA
Systematic review and meta-analysis comparing supraglottic airway devices with endotracheal intubation in out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. Abstract not yet available (ahead-of-print).
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Higher CPR SpO2 linked to ROSC, not good outcome
Study of 98 OHCAs asking whether pulse oximetry readings during CPR relate to outcomes — higher event-average SpO2 was associated with sustained ROSC (aOR 1.05, AUC 0.77, cutpoint ~71%) and survival to admission, but not neurological intact survival, and cycle-average SpO2 did not track compression quality metrics.
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Calcium with prehospital blood products for trauma
Meta-analysis of calcium supplementation during prehospital blood-product trauma resuscitation. Abstract not yet available (ahead-of-print).
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rCAST score in young children after arrest
External validation of the rCAST post-cardiac arrest prognostic score in 75 infants and young children after targeted temperature management — good discrimination (AUC 0.947 for unfavourable neurologic outcome, 0.857 for mortality) with no favourable outcomes in the high-severity group, but 76% of low-score patients did well and the authors caution against using it for clinical decisions.
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Drone AED network modelling for Scotland
Bayesian optimisation of a drone-assisted AED delivery network using geographically referenced Scottish cardiac arrest data — station placement driven by OHCA survival probability and existing EMS coverage, with cost-effectiveness analysis suggesting drone AED delivery is cost-effective and could meaningfully improve response coverage in rural areas with long ambulance response times.
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No evidence to change ALS in toxic arrest
A systematic review of intra-arrest treatment modifications for toxicological cardiac arrest found only four observational studies, all at critical risk of bias, with no evidence supporting any change to standard advanced life support.