Association between Mode of Transportation and Survival in Adult Trauma Patients with Blunt Injuries: Matched Cohort Study between Police and Ground Ambulance Transport

Abstract

Introduction: Early police transport (PT) of penetrating trauma patients has the potential to improve survival rates for trauma patients. There are no well-established guidelines for the transport of blunt trauma patients by PT currently. Study Objective: This study examines the association between the survival rate of blunt trauma patients and the transport modality (police versus ground ambulance). Methods: A retrospective, matched cohort study was conducted using the National Trauma Data Bank (NTDB). All blunt trauma patients transported by police to trauma centers were identified and matched (one-to-four) to patients transported by ground Emergency Medical Services (EMS) for analysis. Descriptive analysis was carried out. This was followed by comparing all patients' characteristics and their survival rates in terms of the mode of transportation. Results: Out of the 2,469 patients with blunt injuries, EMS transported 1,846 patients and police transported 623 patients. Most patients were 16-64 years of age (86.2%) with a male predominance (82.5%). Fall (38.4%) was the most common mechanism of injury with majority of injuries involving the head and neck body part (64.8%). Fractures were the most common nature of injury (62.1%). The overall survival rate of adult blunt trauma patients was similar for both methods of transportation (99.2%; P = 1.000). Conclusion: In this study, adult blunt trauma patients transported by police had similar outcomes to those transported by EMS. As such, PT in trauma should be encouraged and protocolized to improve resource utilization and outcomes further. © 2021 Cambridge University Press. All rights reserved.