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Evidence suggests that prehospital interventions are helpful for blunt trauma victims in rural areas with prolonged transport times but harmful for penetrating trauma patients in urban settings with rapid access to trauma centers. Researchers conducted a retrospective chart review of penetrating trauma patients who underwent emergency department thoracotomy at a single inner-city level I trauma center from 2000 through 2005 to compare survival in patients who were transported by emergency medical services (88 patients) with those transported by police or private vehicle (92).
EMS-transported patients, compared with those transported by other means, were significantly more likely to exhibit signs of life in the field (83% vs. 69%) and had sig…