ArticleAnnals of surgery2016
Geographic Variation in Outcome Benefits of Helicopter Transport for Trauma in the United States: A Retrospective Cohort Study.
Article in Annals of surgery, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 13 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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Who cites it
13 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Relationships between trauma death, disability, and geographic factors: a systematic review.Clinical and experimental emergency medicine · 2023Pooled it
- Disparities in Adult and Pediatric Trauma Outcomes: a Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.World journal of surgery · 2020Pooled it
- Impact of Trauma System Structure on Injury Outcomes: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.World journal of surgery · 2018Pooled it
- Mortality rates in physician staffed ground vs. air ambulance for severe trauma patients: retrospective analysis of the Japanese nationwide trauma registry.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Effectiveness of road safety interventions: An evidence and gap map.Campbell systematic reviews · 2024Article
- The Association Between Congestive Heart Failure and One-Year Mortality After Surgery in Singaporean Adults: A Secondary Retrospective Cohort Study Using Propensity-Score Matching, Propensity Adjustment, and Propensity-Based Weighting.Frontiers in cardiovascular medicine · 2022Article
- Defining geographic emergency medical services coverage in trauma systems.The journal of trauma and acute care surgery · 2019Article
- Distance matters: Effect of geographic trauma system resource organization on fatal motor vehicle collisions.The journal of trauma and acute care surgery · 2017Article
- Outcomes after helicopter versus ground emergency medical services for major trauma--propensity score and instrumental variable analyses: a retrospective nationwide cohort study.Scandinavian journal of trauma, resuscitation and emergency medicine · 2016Observational
- Helicopters and injured kids: Improved survival with scene air medical transport in the pediatric trauma population.The journal of trauma and acute care surgery · 2016Article
- Helicopter transport improves survival following injury in the absence of a time-saving advantage.Surgery · 2016Article
- Geographic distribution of trauma centers and injury-related mortality in the United States.The journal of trauma and acute care surgery · 2016Article
- The Ideal Trauma Transport Modality: Helicopter or Ground Ambulance? A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.Journal of emergencies, trauma, and shockArticle
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
7 authors.
Funding
Abstract
objectiveEvaluate the effect of US geographic region on outcomes of helicopter transport (HT) for trauma.
backgroundHT is an integral component of trauma systems. Evidence suggests that HT is associated with improved outcomes; however, no studies examine the impact of geographic variation on outcomes for HT.
methodsRetrospective cohort study of patients undergoing scene HT or ground transport in the National Trauma Databank (2009-2012). Subjects were divided by US census region. HT and ground transport subjects were propensity-score matched based on prehospital physiology and injury severity. Conditional logistic regression was used to evaluate the effect of HT on survival and discharge to home in each region. Region-level characteristics were assessed as potential explanatory factors.
resultsA total of 193,629 pairs were matched. HT was associated with increased odds of survival and discharge to home; however, the magnitude of these effects varied significantly across regions (P < 0.01). The South had the greatest survival benefit (odds ratio: 1.44; 95% confidence interval: 1.39-1.49, P < 0.01) and the Northeast had the greatest discharge to home benefit (odds ratio: 1.29; 95% confidence interval: 1.18-1.41, P < 0.01). A subset of region-level characteristics influenced the effect of HT on each outcome, including helicopter utilization, injury severity, trauma center and helicopter distribution, trauma center access, traffic congestion, and urbanicity (P < 0.05).
conclusionsGeographic region impacts the benefits of HT in trauma. Variations in resource allocation partially account for outcome differences. Policy makers should consider regional factors to better assess and allocate resources within trauma systems to optimize the role of HT.
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