In-flight treatment for anaphylactic patients

New research published in the Air Medical Journal has analysed the outcomes of patients suffering from anaphylaxis treated by air ambulance medics while at the scene. The study, ‘An Analysis of Patients with Anaphylaxis Treated by a Physician-Staffed Helicopter’, was performed by doctors working in acute critical care medicine at Shizuoka Hospital in Japan. The object of the research was to determine whether anaphylactic patients treated by the doctor helicopter staff and transported from the scene to a hospital obtained a favourable outcome by analysing changes in vital signs and clinical manifestation before and after treatment during flight.

A total of 68 cases were enrolled in the study, with the average age of the patient being 48 years old, and most were men. The most frequent cause of anaphylaxis was a bee or wasp sting, followed by a food allergy. Adrenaline injections were executed at the scene for 48 cases. The condition of 64 (94 per cent) subjects improved or totally subsided after arriving at the hospital. The Glasgow Coma Scale, peripheral capillary oxygen saturation, and systolic blood pressure after transportation to a hospital were higher than before transportation. All subjects who were treated by the DH staff obtained a survival outcome without sequelae. In conclusion, the researching doctors found that vital signs and clinical conditions of the patients who were treated by the helicopter medics when they were in an anaphylactic state at the scene showed improvement when they arrived at the hospital.