Impact of telemedicine interventions on mortality in patients with acute myocardial infarction: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Despite the promise of telemedicine to improve care for ischaemic heart disease, there are significant obstacles to implementation. Demonstrating improvement in patient-centred outcomes is important to support development of these innovative strategies. OBJECTIVE: To assess the impact of telemedicine interventions on mortality after acute myocardial infarction (AMI). METHODS: Articles were searched in MEDLINE, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, Literatura Latino-Americana e do Caribe em Ciências da Saúde (LILACS), Base de Dados de Enfermagem (BDENF), Indice Bibliográfico Español en Ciencias de la Salud (IBECs), Web of Science, Scopus and Google Scholar, from January 2004 to January 2018. Study selection and data extraction were performed by two independent reviewers. In-hospital mortality (primary outcome), and door-to-balloon (DTB) time, 30-day mortality and long-term mortality (secondary outcomes) were assessed. Random effects models were applied to estimate pooled results. RESULTS: Thirty non-randomised controlled and seven quasi-experimental studies were included (16 960 patients). They were classified as moderate or serious risk of bias by ROBINS-I (Risk Of Bias In Non-randomized Studies-of Interventions tool). In 31 studies, the intervention was prehospital ECG transmission. Telemedicine was associated with reduced in-hospital mortality compared with usual care (relative risk (RR) 0.63(95% confidence interval[CI] 0.55 to 0.72); I2 <0.001%). DTB time was consistently reduced (mean difference -28 (95% CI -35 to -20) min), but showed large heterogeneity (I2=94%). Thirty-day mortality (RR 0.62;95% CI 0.43 to 0.85) and long-term mortality (RR 0.61(95% CI 0.40 to 0.92)) were also reduced, with moderate heterogeneity (I2=52%). CONCLUSIONS: There is moderate-quality evidence that telemedicine strategies, in particular ECG transmission, combined with the usual care for AMI are associated with reduced in-hospital mortality and very-low quality evidence that they reduce DTB time, 30-day mortality and long-term mortality.

Flutter atrial: implicações na abordagem da clínica de urgência / Atrial flutter: implications on the approach of clinical urgency

O flutter atrial é uma arritmia cardíaca do grupo das taquiarritmias supraventriculares (TSV), com prevalência estimada de 85:100.000 habitantes e surge, frequentemente, nos atendimentos de urgência clínica. Pode se manifestar por frequências atriais de 220 a 360 bpm, com episódios durando de segundos a horas. Sua apresentação clínica varia de forma oligossintomática até lipotímia, principalmente quando a frequência ventricular é alta, com risco de lesão miocárdica. Associa-se, em geral, a doenças cardíacas prévias ou a condições sistêmicas como a tireotoxicose. Ocorre de forma aroxística ou crônica, revestindo-se, algumas vezes, de grande dificuldade no diagnóstico diferencial com outras TSV. O controle do flutter atrial utiliza métodos de controle da frequência cardíaca e de cardioversões farmacológica e não farmacológica, cuja escolha baseia-se, principalmente, nas condições clínicas do paciente. Este artigo objetiva estabelecer os critérios atuais para a abordagem do flutter atrial e sua diferenciação com outras TSV.

Atrial flutter is a cardiac arrhythmia which is part of the Supraventricular Tachyarrhythmia (STs) group the estimated prevalence of 85 cases per 100,000 people, and appears frequently in the urgent care clinic. The arrhythmia can manifest atrial frequencies from 220 to 360 bpm with episodes that may last from seconds to hours. Furthermore, its clinical presentation varies from oligossymptomatic forms to presyncopes, mainly with high ventricular response, when there is significant risk of myocardial damage. It is in general associated to previous cardiac or systemic conditions (e.g. thyrotoxicosis). It occurs either in paroxysmal or chronicle forms, sometimes with great difficulty for differential diagnosis with other STs. The atrial flutter control uses methods of heart rate control and pharmacological or non-pharmacological cardio version, whose choice is based primarily on the patient’s clinical conditions. This article aims to gathering information that would provide the current criteria for the approach of atrial flutter regarding its accurate diagnosis and its differentiation from other STs.

Abordagem do Flutter atrial na urgência: relato de caso / Approach of atrial flutter in the emergency: case report

O flutter atrial é uma arritmia que ocorre predominantemente em portadores de cardiopatia. Este artigo relata o caso de paciente portador de cardiopatia reumática com duas trocas de valvas (aórtica e mitral), a última delas ocorrida há 10 anos, com palpitações e congestão sistêmica. A suspeição inicial foi de taquicardia paroxística supraventricular (TPSV), tendo sido tentada a cardioversão com adenosina, sem sustentação. O eletrocardiograma (ECG) foi revisto, e o diagnóstico estabelecido foi de flutter atrial. A cardioversão elétrica foi realizada nove dias após sua admissão, tendo sido obtida a sustentação do ritmo sinusal.

Atrial flutter is an arrhythmia that occurs predominantly in patients with previous heart disease. This article reports the case of a patient with rheumatic heart disease and with two exchanged valves, the aortic and mitral, and the last exchange procedure took place ten years ago, with the placement of metallic prostheses. The first diagnosis was paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia (PSVT) and it was attempted cardioversion with adenosine, without success. The electrocardiogram (ECG) was revised and atrial flutter was diagnosed. Electrical cardioversion was performed after 9 days in hospital, and the rhythm was sustained.