A comparison of the incidence of cricothyrotomy in the deployed setting to the emergency department at a level 1 military trauma center: a descriptive analysis.
Military Medicine · 2015-03-01 · Observational study
Abstract
Airway management is a critical skill of emergency medicine physicians and prehospital providers. Airway compromise is the cause of 1.8% of battlefield deaths. Cricothyrotomy is a critical, lifesaving procedure. In this study, we conducted a retrospective descriptive analysis comparing the incidence of cricothyrotomies in the deployed setting versus the incidence in a military level 1 trauma center emergency department (ED) setting in San Antonio, Texas. The deployed/in-theater procedures were performed from September 2007 to July 2009. The ED procedures were performed from April 2010 to February 2012. Over these study periods, 28 cricothyrotomies were performed in the deployed setting against a backdrop of 11,492 trauma admissions compared to 4 cricothyrotomies performed during 2,741 trauma admissions in the ED setting. The per admission incidence of deployed cricothyrotomies was 0.24% versus an incidence of 0.15% in the ED (p=0.46). We conclude that this rare, lifesaving procedure is performed more often in the deployed setting than the ED, but this difference was not statistically significant.
Abstract © the authors or publisher, via PubMed. Reuse and removal
Tags
Cricothyroidotomy · Military & tactical · Prehospital physicians
Related articles
- Lateral Canthotomy/Cantholysis Performance Gap Analysis and Training Recommendations for Expeditionary Physicians. (Mil Med, 2024)
- High Success Rate of Prehospital and En Route Cricothyroidotomy Performed in the Israel Defense Forces: 20 Years of Experience. (Prehosp Disaster Med, 2021)
- [The correct way to deal with the definitive surgical airway]. (Anaesthesiologie, 2023)
- Registry of emergency airways arriving at combat hospitals. (J Trauma, 2008)
- Prehospital trauma experience of the Israel defense forces on the Syrian border 2013-2017. (J Trauma Acute Care Surg, 2019)
- [Applying the new conicotomy kit is the key to solve the problem of asphyxia at the prehospital stage]. (Stomatologiia (Mosk), 2021)