Impact of SARS-CoV-2 on extra-hospital cardiac arrest

Introduction : The pandemic caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus has affected nearly 240 million people around the world. This pandemic has had a great impact on individual and collective clinical practice. Objective : Impact of SARS-CoV-2 on out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OCAH), through gender, context, initial rhythm, survival and neurological recovery. Design, settings, and participants : A retrospective analysis of a cohort of OCAH patients who were treated by the mobile emergency and intensive care unit (MICU) of the Erasme hospital - University clinics of Brussels was conducted. All interventions concerning an OCAH, from 01/01/2019 to 12/31/2019, reflecting a non-pandemic period and from 01/01/2020 to 12/31/2020, reflecting a period of SARSCoV-2 pandemic were analyzed. Main results : This study shows an increase in the male/ female ratio, as well as an increase in the number of OCAH. During the second wave, more than half of OCAHs had a suspected respiratory etiology. This period indicate an increase in ventricular fibrillation, as well as better autonomy and neurological sequelae, despite the statistical tests between a non-pandemic and a pandemic SARS-CoV-2 period were not significant. Conclusion : This retrospective cohort of patients who used MICU of HE-CUB during a non-pandemic and a pandemic period, highlights the impact of SARS-CoV-2 in absolute numbers on OCAH.