Effect of Scene Time Intervals in Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest

To determine the association between scene time interval and neurological outcomes in patients with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest, researchers retrospectively analyzed data from 7759 adults with witnessed, nontraumatic arrest in Seoul, South Korea, and Osaka, Japan. Neurological outcomes were assessed at hospital discharge in Seoul and one month after arrest in Osaka. Scene time interval was defined as time from ambulance arrival at the scene to time of departure to the hospital, and was divided into 3 categories: short (<8 min), intermediate (8–16 minutes), and long (≥16 minutes).

Factors that differed significantly among the scene-time groups were sex, age, primary rhythm, city, public versus private location of arrest, bystander cardiopu…