Out-of-hospital Times Using Helicopters Versus Ground Services for Emergency Patients

Minimizing out-of-hospital time reduces morbidity and mortality in patients with severe trauma, acute coronary syndrome, or acute stroke. Our objective was to compare out-of-hospital times by helicopter versus ground services when the estimated time of arrival on the scene was over 20 minutes.

We proposed a retrospective observational monocentric study following 2 cohorts. The helicopter group and the ground group included patients with severe trauma, acute coronary syndrome, or acute stroke transported by helicopter or ground services.

Two hundred thirty-nine patients were included; 118 were in the ground group, and 121 were in the helicopter group. Distances for the helicopter group were higher (62.1 ± 22.5 km vs. 27.6 ± 10.4 km, P < .001). When distances were over 35 km, the helicopter group was faster. We identified distance, need for surgery, and intensive care hospitalization as 3 predicting factors for choosing helicopters over ground modes of transport.

In cases of severe trauma, acute coronary syndrome, or acute stroke, emergency medical helicopter transport can be chosen over ground transport when patients are in a severe state and when the distance is further than 35 km from the hospital.