Basic life support education in secondary schools: a cross-sectional survey in London, UK.

OBJECTIVES: Basic life support (BLS) training in schools is associated with improved outcomes from cardiac arrest. International consensus statements have recommended universal BLS training for school-aged children. The current practice of BLS training in London schools is unknown. The aim of this study was to assess current practices of BLS training in London secondary schools. SETTING, POPULATION AND OUTCOMES: A prospective audit of BLS training in London secondary schools was conducted. Schools were contacted by email, and a subsequent telephone interview was conducted with staff familiar with local training practices. Response data were anonymised and captured electronically. Universal training was defined as any programme which delivers BLS training to all students in the school. Descriptive statistics were used to summarise the results. RESULTS: A total of 65 schools completed the survey covering an estimated student population of 65 396 across 19 of 32 London boroughs. There were 5 (8%) schools that provide universal training programmes for students and an additional 31 (48%) offering training as part of an extracurricular programme or chosen module. An automated external defibrillator (AED) was available in 18 (28%) schools, unavailable in 40 (61%) and 7 (11%) reported their AED provision as unknown. The most common reasons for not having a universal BLS training programme are the requirement for additional class time (28%) and that funding is unavailable for such a programme (28%). There were 5 students who died from sudden cardiac arrest over the period of the past 10 years. CONCLUSIONS: BLS training rates in London secondary schools are low, and the majority of schools do not have an AED available in case of emergency. These data highlight an opportunity to improve BLS training and AEDs provision. Future studies should assess programmes which are cost-effective and do not require significant amounts of additional class time.

Natural history of early repolarization in the inferior leads.

AIMS: Though early repolarization (ER) in the inferior leads has been associated with increased cardiovascular risk, its natural history is uncertain. We aimed to study the serial electrocardiographic behavior of inferior ER and understand factors associated with that behavior. METHODS: We selected electrocardiograms (ECGs) from patients with the greatest amplitude of ER in AVF from ECGs of 29,281 ambulatory patients recorded between 1987 and 1999 at the Palo Alto Veterans Affairs Hospital. Starting from the highest amplitude, we reviewed the ECGs and medical records from the first 85%. From this convenience sample, 36 were excluded for abnormal patterns similar to ER. The remaining 257 patients were searched for another ECG at least 5 months later, of whom, 136 satisfied this criteria. These ECGs were paired for comparison and coded by four interpreters. RESULTS: The average time between the first and second ECGs was 10 years. Of the 136 subjects, 47% retained ER while 53% no longer fulfilled the amplitude criteria. While no significant differences were found in initial heart rate (HR) or time interval between ECGs, those who lost the ER pattern had a greater difference in HR between the ECGs. There was no significant difference in the incidence of cardiovascular events or deaths. CONCLUSIONS: In conclusion, the ECG pattern of ER was lost over 10 years in over half of the cohort. The loss of ER was partially explained by changes in HR, but not higher incidence of cardiovascular events or death, suggesting the entity is a benign finding.

Natural history of the electrocardiographic pattern of early repolarization in ambulatory patients.

Although it is known that the electrocardiographic pattern of early repolarization (ER) occurs most commonly in healthy young bradycardic men, its natural history is uncertain. We considered initial electrocardiograms (ECGs) at rest from 29,281 ambulatory patients recorded from 1987 through 1999 at Veterans Affairs Palo Alto Hospital. With PR interval as the isoelectric line and amplitude criterion as >0.1 mV ER was identified when any of the following fulfilled the amplitude criterion: ST-segment elevation at the end of the QRS duration, J waves as an upward deflection, and slurs as delay on the R wave downstroke. The first 250 ECGs with the greatest ER increase were selected and the database was searched for an ECG >5 months later. Of the 250 patients selected with the greatest amplitude of ER 6 were excluded for electrocardiographic abnormalities, leaving 244 subjects, of whom 122 had another ECG ≥5 months later. Their average age was 42 ± 10 years and average time from the first to second ECG was 10 years. Of the 122 patients 47 (38%) retained ER, whereas most (62%) no longer fulfilled the amplitude criterion. There were no significant differences in heart rate or time interval between ECGs. In conclusion, the electrocardiographic pattern of ER was lost over 10 years in more than half of this young clinical cohort and the loss was not caused by higher heart rate, longer time between ECGs, decrease in R-wave amplitude, death, acute disease, or alterations in electrocardiographic diagnostic characteristics.