Dr. Irma Domínguez, academic coordinator of FUNIBER’s Health and Nutrition Area, is part of a study that explores how demographic and prehospital factors are related to mortality in acute cardiovascular diseases.
Cardiovascular diseases are responsible for many cases requiring medical attention in the prehospital setting, as well as for a significant number of unplanned hospitalizations and sudden, unexplained deaths. Emergency medical services (EMS) face the challenge of managing this high patient load quickly and efficiently, following established clinical guidelines and with appropriate training, such as basic and advanced life support.
Specific screening codes have been established in healthcare systems for life-threatening conditions such as cardiorespiratory arrest and stroke. However, one of the challenges for emergency physicians is to identify patients with acute cardiovascular disease who are at greatest risk of mortality, mainly when symptoms are framed or influenced by other factors, such as comorbidities or advanced age.
Aging in the population has generated a change in the type of patients treated by emergency medical services, and older adults have become a relevant care group. As life expectancy increases, diseases such as atrial fibrillation, acute coronary syndrome, and congestive heart failure become more frequent. However, aging-related complications can make proper diagnosis and treatment difficult, as some older adults may present with atypical symptoms or may have concurrent diseases that interact with the cardiovascular system.
Therefore, this study aimed to look for associations between demographic and prehospital factors with short- and long-term mortality in life-threatening acute cardiovascular disease. Particularly, two age cohorts, patients younger than 75 years and older than 75 years, were compared to gain a better understanding of the unique characteristics and challenges faced by individuals in relation to these diseases.
The results showed that elderly patients, older than 75 years, have a doubled risk of mortality compared to younger patients, younger than 74 years. In addition, interventions such as mechanical ventilation, cardioversion, and defibrillation were also found to be associated with an increased risk of mortality.
If you want to know more about this fascinating study, click here.
For further research, check the UNEATLANTICO repository. The Iberoamerican University Foundation (FUNIBER) offers various programs of study in the area of health and nutrition. If you want to know more, click here.