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© 2025 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and Conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License.

Abstract

Out-of-hospital cardiac arrests (OHCAs) have high mortality rates, worsened by limited access to automated external defibrillators (AEDs). This study analyzed OHCA response times, identified areas with prolonged ambulance travel times, and proposed optimal AED locations in a medium-sized city in southern Brazil. Data from 278 non-traumatic OHCA cases (2019–2022) in patients over 18 years old, with ambulance response times under 20 min, were included. Spatial survival analysis assessed the probability of exceeding the recommended 5-min (300 s) ambulance response time. The maximal covering location problem identified 100 strategic AED sites within a 150-s reach for bystanders. AED and ambulance travel times were compared using the Wilcoxon test (p < 0.01). Defibrillation occurred in 89 cases (31.01%), and bystander CPR was performed in 149 cases (51.92%). Despite these efforts, 77% of patients died. The median ambulance response time was 11.63 min, exceeding 5 min in most cases, particularly at peak times like 11 a.m. AED placement in selected locations could cover 76% of OHCA occurrences, with a mean AED travel time of 320 s compared to 709 s for ambulances. Strategic AED placement could enhance early defibrillation and improve survival outcomes.

Details

Title
Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest Ambulance Delay Zones and AED Placement in a Southern Brazilian City
Author
Marcos Rogério Bitencourt 1 ; Bitencourt, Mariá Romanio 2 ; Silva, Lincoln Luís 3   VIAFID ORCID Logo  ; Amanda Gubert Alves dos Santos 4 ; Iora, Pedro 2 ; José Anderson Labbado 1 ; Mauricio Medeiros Lemos 1 ; de Paulo, Luiz Gustavo 5   VIAFID ORCID Logo  ; Júlia Loverde Gabella 2   VIAFID ORCID Logo  ; Juliana Lourenço Lopes Costa 5   VIAFID ORCID Logo  ; Hideky Ikeda Dolci 5 ; Giacomin, Vinicius 1 ; Pelloso, Sandra Marisa 1 ; Maria Dalva de Barros Carvalho 1 ; de Andrade, Luciano 6 

 Post Graduate Program in Health Sciences, State University of Maringá, Maringá 87020-900, Paraná, Brazil; [email protected] (L.L.S.); [email protected] (J.A.L.); [email protected] (M.M.L.); [email protected] (V.G.); [email protected] (S.M.P.); [email protected] (M.D.d.B.C.); [email protected] (L.d.A.) 
 Department of Medicine, State University of Maringá, Maringá 87020-900, Paraná, Brazil; [email protected] (M.R.B.); [email protected] (P.I.); [email protected] (J.L.G.) 
 Post Graduate Program in Health Sciences, State University of Maringá, Maringá 87020-900, Paraná, Brazil; [email protected] (L.L.S.); [email protected] (J.A.L.); [email protected] (M.M.L.); [email protected] (V.G.); [email protected] (S.M.P.); [email protected] (M.D.d.B.C.); [email protected] (L.d.A.); Department of Emergency Medicine, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC 27708, USA 
 Department of Health Sciences, Centro Universitário Integrado, Campo Mourão 87309-701, Paraná, Brazil; [email protected] 
 Department of Medicine, Centro Universitário de Maringá, Maringá 87050-900, Paraná, Brazil; [email protected] (L.G.d.P.); [email protected] (J.L.L.C.); [email protected] (H.I.D.) 
 Post Graduate Program in Health Sciences, State University of Maringá, Maringá 87020-900, Paraná, Brazil; [email protected] (L.L.S.); [email protected] (J.A.L.); [email protected] (M.M.L.); [email protected] (V.G.); [email protected] (S.M.P.); [email protected] (M.D.d.B.C.); [email protected] (L.d.A.); Department of Medicine, State University of Maringá, Maringá 87020-900, Paraná, Brazil; [email protected] (M.R.B.); [email protected] (P.I.); [email protected] (J.L.G.) 
First page
173
Publication year
2025
Publication date
2025
Publisher
MDPI AG
ISSN
1661-7827
e-ISSN
1660-4601
Source type
Scholarly Journal
Language of publication
English
ProQuest document ID
3170983599
Copyright
© 2025 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and Conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License.