The effects of route of admission to a percutaneous coronary intervention centre among patients with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest

Abstract Aim Patients with OHCA who are not transported directly to a percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI)-capable hospital may eventually undergo an inter-hospital transfer (IHT). The aim of the present study was to investigate the effects of route of admission to a PCI centre among patients with OHCA. Methods We included patients with OHCA of presumed cardiac aetiology that were admitted to a PCI centre between January 2015 and December 2016. The exposure variable was route of admission: direct versus indirect. The ‘direct’ group was defined as patients who were transferred directly from the field to a PCI centre by emergency medical service (EMS) providers. The ‘indirect’ group was defined as patients who underwent IHT from a non-PCI centre to a PCI centre. The primary outcome was neurological recovery. We evaluated the effects of route of admission using multivariable logistic regression analysis after adjusting for potential confounders. Results There were total of 4,363 eligible patients: 3,488 (78.2%) in the direct group and 975 (21.8%) in the indirect group. Neurologic recovery was better in the direct group (38.0%) than in the indirect group (29.0%). After adjusting for potential confounders, indirect admission was negatively associated with outcomes (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] 0.70; 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.58– 0.85). Conclusions The route of admission to a PCI centre is associated with neurological recovery among resuscitated patients with OHCA of presumed cardiac aetiology. This has implications for regionalized EMS transport and IHT protocols for patients with OHCA.