Use of the Airstretcher with dragging may reduce rescuers' physical burden when transporting patients down stairs

Transporting patients down stairs by carrying is associated with a particularly high fall risk for patients and the occurrence of back pain among emergency medical technicians. The present study aimed to verify the effectiveness of the Airstretcher device, which was developed to reduce rescuers' physical burden when transporting patients by dragging along the floor and down stairs. Forty-one paramedical students used three devices to transport a 65-kg manikin down stairs from the 3rd to the 1st floor. To verify the physical burden while carrying the stretchers, ratings of perceived exertion were measured using the Borg CR10 scale immediately after the task. Mean Borg CR10 scores (standard deviation) were 3.6 (1.7), 4.1 (1.8), 5.6 (2.4), and 4.2 (1.8) for the Airstretcher with dragging, Airstretcher with lifting, backboard with lifting, and tarpaulin with lifting conditions, respectively (p < 0.01). Multiple comparisons revealed that the Airstretcher with dragging condition was associated with significantly lower Borg CR10 scores compared with the backboard with lifting condition (p < 0.01). When the analysis was divided by handling position, estimated Borg CR10 values (standard error) for head position were 4.4 (1.3), 2.9 (0.9), 3.2 (0.8), and 4.0 (1.1) for the Airstretcher with dragging, Airstretcher with lifting, backboard with lifting, and tarpaulin with lifting conditions, respectively, after adjusting for participant and duration time (F = 1.4, p < 0.25). The estimated Borg CR10 value (standard error) for toe position in the Airstretcher with dragging condition was 2.0 (0.8), and the scores for the side position were 4.9 (0.4), 6.1 (0.3), and 4.7 (0.4) for the Airstretcher with lifting, backboard with lifting, and tarpaulin with lifting conditions, respectively, after adjusting for participant and duration time (F = 3.6, p = 0.02). Transferring a patient down stairs inside a house by dragging using the Airstretcher may reduce the physical burden for rescuers.