Successful recovery from delayed amniotic fluid embolism with prolonged cardiac resuscitation

Defining definitions: a Delphi study to develop a core outcome set for conditions of severe maternal morbidity

OBJECTIVE

Develop a core outcome set of international consensus definitions for severe maternal morbidities.

DESIGN

Electronic Delphi study.

SETTING

International.

POPULATION

Eight expert panels.

METHODS

All 13 high-income countries represented in the International Network of Obstetric Surveillance Systems (INOSS) nominated five experts per condition of morbidity, who submitted possible definitions. From these suggestions, a steering committee distilled critical components: eclampsia: 23, amniotic fluid embolism: 15, pregnancy-related hysterectomy: 11, severe primary postpartum haemorrhage: 19, uterine rupture: 20, abnormally invasive placentation: 12, spontaneous haemoperitoneum in pregnancy: 16, and cardiac arrest in pregnancy: 10. These components were assessed by the expert panel using a 5-point Likert scale, following which a framework for an encompassing definition was constructed. Possible definitions were evaluated in rounds until a rate of agreement of more than 70% was reached. Expert commentaries were used in each round to improve definitions.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES

Definitions with a rate of agreement of more than 70%.

RESULTS

The invitation to participate in one or more of eight Delphi processes was accepted by 103 experts from 13 high-income countries. Consensus definitions were developed for all of the conditions.

CONCLUSION

Consensus definitions for eight morbidity conditions were successfully developed using the Delphi process. These should be used in national registrations and international studies, and should be taken up by the Core Outcomes in Women's and Newborn Health initiative.

TWEETABLE ABSTRACT

Consensus definitions for eight morbidity conditions were successfully developed using the Delphi process.

Review and Outcome of Prolonged Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation

The maximal duration of cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) is unknown. We report a case of prolonged CPR. We have then reviewed all published cases with CPR duration equal to or more than 20 minutes. The objective was to determine the survival rate, the neurological outcome, and the characteristics of the survivors. Measurements and Main Results. The CPR data for 82 patients was reviewed. The median duration of CPR was 75 minutes. Patients mean age was 43 ± 21 years with no significant comorbidities. The main causes of the cardiac arrests were myocardial infarction (29%), hypothermia (21%), and pulmonary emboli (12%). 74% of the arrests were witnessed, with a mean latency to CPR of 2 ± 6 minutes and good quality chest compression provided in 96% of the cases. Adjunct therapy included extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (18%), thrombolysis (15.8%), and rewarming for hypothermia (19.5%). 83% were alive at 1 year, with full neurological recovery reported in 63 patients. Conclusion. Patients undergoing prolonged CPR can survive with good outcome. Young age, myocardial infarction, and potentially reversible causes of cardiac arrest such as hypothermia and pulmonary emboli predict a favorable result, especially when the arrest is witnessed and followed by prompt and good resuscitative efforts.

Amniotic fluid embolism pathophysiology suggests the new diagnostic armamentarium: β-tryptase and complement fractions C3-C4 are the indispensable working tools

Amniotic fluid embolism (AFE) is an uncommon obstetric condition involving pregnant women during labor or in the initial stages after delivery. Its incidence is estimated to be around 5.5 cases per 100,000 deliveries. Therefore, this paper investigated the pathophysiological mechanism, which underlies AFE, in order to evaluate the role of immune response in the development of this still enigmatic clinical entity. The following databases (from 1956 to September 2014) Medline, Cochrane Central, Scopus, Web of Science and Science Direct were used, searching the following key words: AFE, pathophysiology, immune/inflammatory response, complement and anaphylaxis. The main key word "AFE" was searched singularly and associated individually to each of the other keywords. Of the 146 sources found, only 19 were considered appropriate for the purpose of this paper. The clinical course is characterized by a rapid onset of symptoms, which include: acute hypotension and/or cardiac arrest, acute hypoxia (with dyspnoea, cyanosis and/or respiratory arrest), coagulopathies (disseminated intravascular coagulation and/or severe hemorrhage), coma and seizures. The pathology still determines a significant morbidity and mortality and potential permanent neurological sequelae for surviving patients. At this moment, numerous aspects involving the pathophysiology and clinical development are still not understood and several hypotheses have been formulated, in particular the possible role of anaphylaxis and complement. Moreover, the detection of serum tryptase and complement components and the evaluation of fetal antigens can explain several aspects of immune response.