PARAMEDIC-3 COMPLETE AND PUBLISHED!
The PARAMEDIC-3 trial was looking at the most effective way to treat someone when their heart suddenly stops working out of hospital by giving drugs through a vein or into the bone. Answering this question will help to improve future treatment of people who have a cardiac arrest.
Why was the trial needed?
Drugs such as adrenaline are widely used to treat cardiac arrest. The sooner these drugs are given the better the chance is that they will be successful.
Where was the trial being conducted?
The trial was delivered by the University of Warwick in partnership with the following ambulance services in England and Wales:
North East Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust
North West Ambulance Service NHS Trust
West Midlands Ambulance Service University NHS Foundation Trust
East Midlands Ambulance Service NHS Trust
South Western Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust
South Central Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust
South East Coast Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust
London Ambulance Service NHS Trust
East of England Ambulance Service NHS Trust
Welsh Ambulance Services NHS Trust
Devon Air Ambulance Trust (daat.org)
What were the results?
The PARAMEDIC-3 trial was published in The New England Journal of Medicine in October 2024. See the full article here:
A Randomized Trial of Drug Route in Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest | New England Journal of Medicine
In summary, it was deemed that there was no statistically significant evidence to suggest that IO adrenaline route was better than IV for patient outcomes.