The academic of the Universidad Internacional Iberoamericana (International Iberoamerican University, UNIB), Dr. Cristina Mazas Pérez, collaborates in a study that compares the clinical characteristics of short, medium and long term mortality in patients attended by emergency medical services.
Emergency Medical Services (EMS) play a crucial role in providing urgent medical assistance to patients in need. They are often the first point of contact between people with acute health conditions and the healthcare system. These services are confronted daily with urgent illnesses that require rapid responses. They must assess the patient's clinical features, provide appropriate treatment and, if necessary, transfer the patient to a referral hospital.
Precision medicine has improved prehospital and emergency department (ED) care through the use of scores composed of clinical, physiological, comorbidities, and analytic variables, which facilitates decision making. However, acute illnesses are life-threatening, not only in the early stages, but also in the long term. Existing literature has demonstrated excess mortality in patients treated by both EMS and EDs after experiencing acute illness.
Although aging may contribute to mortality, evidence suggests that other factors such as senescence and previous functional reserve also play an important role in increasing mortality. Prehospital clinical characteristics may be useful in classifying short- and long-term mortality. Current prognostic models assume a linear relationship between risk factors and clinical outcomes, but daily reality suggests greater complexity.
Machine learning and artificial intelligence-based algorithms make it possible to analyze large amounts of data and develop predictive models to better understand complexity and support clinical decision making.
The findings revealed significant differences in the clinical profiles of patients who died in the short, medium, and long term after receiving EMS care. Those who experienced short-term mortality generally had severe and complex medical conditions, requiring rapid and urgent interventions. On the other hand, patients who had medium- or long-term mortality tended to be chronic patients with underlying conditions, such as cardiac, respiratory or renal disease.
The data from this study also highlighted the importance of continued care after emergency medical care. It was noted that those who received close follow-up and appropriate management of underlying conditions had a higher likelihood of long-term survival. This highlights the importance of coordination and communication between emergency medical services and post-emergency care.
These findings have significant implications for improving the quality and outcomes of emergency care. The results suggest the need for improved post-emergency care protocols and a comprehensive approach to treatment is required to ensure optimal survival through all mortality periods.
To learn more about this study, click here.
To read more research, consult the UNIB repository.
The International Iberoamerican University (UNIB) offers the Master's Degree in Naturopathic Sciences. This program prepares professionals in the different aspects and modalities of naturopathy, techniques, lifestyles and natural therapies that are in harmony with this practice.