Hoe groot kan de impact van publieke automatische externe defibrillatoren in Wetteren zijn?

Abstract

How big can be the impact of public automatic external defibrillators in the municipality of Wetteren? Automatic external defibrillators (AEDs) are so user-friendly, efficient and safe that also non-medically trained people can use them in the event of an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA). These devices are increasingly appearing in the streets, companies, schools, etc. This contribution examines the extent to which these public AEDs can offer added value in the municipality of Wetteren (Belgium). Based on the AED interventions of 112 ambulances (between 2002 and 2016), it was possible to obtain the first recorded heart rhythm (shockable versus non-shockable), the location and the intervention time of the ambulance for 146 patients. In a simulation model, these data were linked to the location of the 37 public AEDs that were available in 2021. A shockable rhythm was found in only 29% of the OHCA cases (43/146). In 20 patients, picking up the nearest public AED would take longer than the ambulance intervention time and 9 patients survived the OHCA thanks to defibrillation during a 112 intervention (therefore, they can never have a survival benefit from the use of a public AED). In the remaining 14 patients (only about 1 per year), defibrillation would have been done more quickly via a public AED. The average time saving was 3 minutes. The results show that public AEDs can only play a minimal role in their current set-up. Further research should reveal the causes of the poor results. This should then lead to recommendations so that local and federal authorities can make public AEDs a spearhead in the treatment of OHCA.