Journal of Telemedicine and Telecare > Volume 14, Number 3 > Pp. 157-159

This Article Figures Only Full Text Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Urwin, A. Articles by Fraser, S. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Social Bookmarking                      What's this?

PAPERS

A five-year review of ground-to-air emergency medical advice

Alastair Urwin ^* , James Ferguson , Roderick McDonald  and Susan Fraser ^*

^* Department of Emergency Medicine, Aberdeen Royal Infirmary, Aberdeen; Scottish Centre for Telehealth, Foresterhill, Aberdeen; International Centre for Emergency Medicine, Department of Emergency Medicine, Aberdeen Royal Infirmary, Aberdeen, UK

Correspondence: Dr A Urwin, Department of Emergency Medicine, Aberdeen Royal Infirmary, Foresterhill, Aberdeen AB25 2ZN, UK (Fax: +44 1224 550 718; Email: a.urwin{at}doctors.org.uk)

We reviewed five years' experience of providing ground-to-air medical advice for commercial passenger aircraft. A total of 273 events occurred in-flight where further advice was sought. The most common age group resulting in calls were from those aged 21–30 years, who generated 38 calls (16%). The 273 cases included gastrointestinal conditions (26%), neurological (22%) and cardiovascular events (14%). Most incidents were managed conservatively in-flight with oxygen and/or other medications. Aircraft diversion occurred on 9% of occasions; cardiovascular and neurological emergencies were the major cause of this. Collaboration between aviation providers should be considered to develop a common database of in-flight emergencies so that contents of medical kits can be standardized in order to improve the quality of care in the air.

CiteULike    Complore    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    What's this?