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Updated: Jan 17, 2026

Insertion, Maintenance, and Removal of the Percutaneous Dual Lumen Cannula Right Ventricular Assist Device
Published on: July 20, 2022
External Ventricular Devices in Air Medical Retrievals
Anita Wall1, Clinton Gibbs2, Lachlan Quick3
1College of Medicine and Dentistry, James Cook University, Townsville, Queensland, Australia; Royal Flying Doctors Services-Queensland Section, Queensland, Australia.
Objective:
Describe the clinical characteristics of patients with an external ventricular drain (EVD) air medically retrieved.
Methods:
A retrospective chart audit of adults with an EVD air medically retrieved between January 2018 and June 2022 was conducted using the Retrieval Services Queensland database. Patients with a diagnosis of subarachnoid hemorrhage were identified, and then a manual review was conducted to identify EVD cases.
Results:
A total of 60 patients met the review criteria. However, 34 patients did not have an EVD in situ, 1 was not transported, and 2 charts were non-retrievable, leaving 21 patients in this review. Of the patients, 76% were mechanically ventilated and 10% had no EVD drainage (suspected to be blocked). Blood pressure fluctuations occurred in 67% of the cases (79% during flight). Separate analgesia/anesthetic infusions were administered in 75% of the patients, with 83% requiring rate increases and 100% requiring boluses for increases in blood pressure. Hypertension in 3 patients occurred post-EVD being turned off and resolved when EVD was turned back on, and bolus sedation/analgesia was provided.
Conclusion:
The air medical transport of patients with an EVD is a low-frequency transfer. Therefore, the use of clinical practice guidelines will enable best practice assessment and management.
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