Clinical features of patients intubated by a flight team

Little information exists about the clinical features of patients intubated by a flight program and the relationships of those factors with flight team intervention.

Prospective analysis was conducted of consecutive patients intubated by a helicopter flight team.

The flight team intubated 11.1% of patients transported. Scene origin and trauma diagnosis were associated with flight team intubation (P <.01). The diagnosis distribution differed between scene and interfacility groups (P <.01), with a trauma diagnosis more common in scene patients and a medical diagnosis more common on interfacility flights. The most common clinical indicator for intubation on both scene and interfacility flights was mental status change. The distribution of indicators, however, also varied with patient origin (P <.01).

The flight team most commonly intubated patients who originated at the scene, suffered traumatic injury, and had altered mental status. Both the diagnosis distribution and primary clinical indicator for intubation varied with patient origin.