Ambulance transport times for children and adult patients with anaphylaxis: A retrospective analysis

Abstract Background Anaphylaxis is a fatal condition that can cause respiratory or cardiac arrest within 30 min. Therefore, it is important to shorten the time from the emergency call to hospital arrival as much as possible. However, children with anaphylaxis in rural areas may require more time for ambulance transport than do adults because of the lack of nearby pediatric medical facilities. Thus, we aimed to compare ambulance transport times between children and adults with anaphylaxis. Methods This retrospective observational study used data from the Kochi-Iryo-Net database. We included patients with anaphylaxis who were transported to the emergency department between April 1, 2015 and March 31, 2021. Children were defined as those aged < 15 years. The primary outcome measure was the total time required for ambulance transportation. To adjust for patient background, we performed multiple linear regression analyses of the outcomes. Results During the study period, 797 patients with anaphylaxis were transported to the emergency department, among whom 155 (19.4%) were children. There was no significant difference in the total ambulance transport time (children: 31 min vs. adults: 32 min, p = 0.41). However, the time from site departure to hospital arrival was 5 min longer for children (16 min vs. adults: 11 min, p < 0.01). Conclusions While no significant difference was observed in the total transport time between children and adult patients with anaphylaxis, there may be potential to optimize the time from site departure to hospital arrival for pediatric cases. Trial registration: not applicable.