Supraventricular tachycardia in children from the perspective of a specialised between-hospital transport team

Abstract

Aims: The aim of this study is to establish the incidence of supraventricular tachycardia (SVT) as a main reason for between-hospital transfer in children, as well as to describe the clinical presentation, prognosis and treatment, risk factors presenting with haemodynamic compromise, and to propose a specific management protocol for the transport.

Methods: A retrospective observational study was conducted on all patients with supraventricular tachycardia transferred by the Hospital Vall d'Hebron Sistema de Emergencias Médicas Pediátricas (SEM-P) between January 2005 and June 2017.

Results: During the study period, 67 (0.9%) patients (out of a total number of 7348 transfers) suffered from SVT. The median age was 57 days (2 h-18 years old). There was clinical evidence of cardiogenic shock on admission in 14 (20.9%) patients. Age ≤1 year was the only independent risk factor associated with presenting with cardiogenic shock on admission, with an OR of 10.2 (95% CI: 1.2-89.9; p = 0.004). The majority of patients could be treated appropriately by the local hospital team, except for oral intubation and cardioversion that were performed mainly by the transport team on arrival at the local hospital. Median stabilisation time was 35 min (9-169), and median total transport time was 30 min (9-165).

Conclusions: Only 0.9% of transport cases are due to SVT, but this can be highly demanding as patients can be critically ill. Age ≤1 year was the only independent risk factor associated with presenting with cardiogenic shock on admission. Coordination between the local and the transport teams is crucial for a good clinical outcome.

Keywords: Cardioversion; Emergencias; Emergency care; Paediatrictransport carepaediatrics; Pediátrico; Supraventricular tachycardia; Taquicardia paroxística supraventricular; Transporte.