TY  - JOUR
PY  - 2015//
TI  - Helicopter versus ground emergency medical services for the transportation of traumatically injured children
JO  - Journal of pediatric surgery
A1  - Stewart, Camille L.
A1  - Metzger, Ryan R.
A1  - Pyle, Laura
A1  - Darmofal, Joe
A1  - Scaife, Eric
A1  - Moulton, Steven L.
SP  - 347
EP  - 352
VL  - 50
IS  - 2
N2  - BACKGROUND: Helicopter emergency medical services (HEMS) are a common mode of transportation for pediatric trauma patients. We hypothesized that HEMS improve outcomes for traumatically injured children compared to ground emergency medical services (GEMS). <br><br>METHODS: We queried trauma registries of two level 1 pediatric trauma centers for children 0-17years, treated from 2003 to 2013, transported by HEMS or GEMS, with known transport starting location and outcome. A geocoding service estimated travel distance and time. Multivariate regression analyses were performed to adjust for injury severity variables and travel distance/time. <br><br>RESULTS: We identified 14,405 traumatically injured children; 3870 (26.9%) transported by HEMS and 10,535 (73.1%) transported by GEMS. Transport type was not significantly associated with survival, ICU length of stay, or discharge disposition. Transport by GEMS was associated with a 68.6%-53.1% decrease in hospital length of stay, depending on adjustment for distance/time. <br><br>RESULTS were similar for children with severe injuries, and with propensity score matched cohorts. Of note, 862/3850 (22.3%) of HEMS transports had an ISS <10 and hospitalization <1day. <br><br>CONCLUSIONS: HEMS do not independently improve outcomes for traumatically injured children, and 22.3% of children transported by HEMS are not significantly injured. These factors should be considered when requesting HEMS for transport of traumatically injured children.<p />  <p>Language: en</p>
LA  - en
SN  - 0022-3468
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jpedsurg.2014.09.040
ID  - ref1
ER  -