Improving oxygenation and ventilation in drowning patients early in the field is critical and may be lifesaving. This may be achieved by helicopter emergency medical services (HEMS) such as the Danish Air Ambulance, or the Royal Danish Air Force's Search And Rescue (SAR) helicopters. The SAR operates in all weather conditions and is equipped with a hoist system, able to hoist patients from the sea or small ships without helipads. This study aimed to estimate the incidence of drowning missions attended by the Royal Danish Air Force's SAR helicopter and describe patient characteristics and prehospital interventions.
The national Danish Drowning Cohort contains data on all fatal and non-fatal drowning patients treated by the Emergency Medical Services. However, data on drowning patients treated by the SAR helicopters is reported in a separate system. The population of drowning patients treated by the SAR helicopters has never been described, thus contributing to the potential underreporting of the most critically ill drowning patients in Denmark. Given the rarity of drowning, registry-based studies are needed to provide patient characteristics and evaluate critical care interventions performed on this group of patients. This study aims to identify and describe a national cohort of drowning patients at sea treated by the Royal Danish Air Force's SAR helicopters from 2014 to 2023.
Study Type
OBSERVATIONAL
Enrollment
247
Patients categorized as drowning have been experiencing respiratory impairment from submersion or immersion in liquid and needing rescue by the Royal Danish Air Force's Search and Rescue (SAR) helicopters.
Prehospital Center
Næstved, Region Sjælland, Denmark
Annual incidence of drowning treated by the Danish SAR helicopters from 2014-2023
The incidence will be reported as the annual number of cases.
Time frame: 1 year
Annual incidence rate of drowning treated by the Danish SAR helicopters from 2014-2023
The incidence rate as the annual number of cases per 100,000 person-years.
Time frame: 1 year
Spatial distribution of drowning patients treated by the Danish SAR helicopters from 2014-2023
The spatial distribution of drowning incidents will be displayed on a map of Denmark, with each case presented with a single entry based on the geographical coordinates of the incident.
Time frame: The map will display all drowning incidents treated by the Danish SAR helicopters from 2014-2023.
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