In the case of absolute emergency situations after stabbing or firearm attacks, the Viennese professional rescue wants to treat more on the open heart itself. The process used that “Clamshell Thoracotomy” is still fairly new in this country. However, the patient often has a much greater chance of survival through this intervention.
In the “Clamshell Thoracotomy” patients with a blood circulation are opened by the chest, “to make life -threatening injuries to be repaired,” as chief doctor Mario Krammel outlines during a background conversation.
“We saw this in Berlin ten years ago and considered how we can bring this training to Vienna,” says Emergency doctor Krammel, one of the ideas providers in the career rescue. Now it is so far that “Clamshell Thoracotomies” can now take place everywhere in the capital if necessary.
100 emergency doctors and 80 emergency paramedics have been trained so far and more needs to be followed. The professional rescue is therefore a pioneer in Austria. “We venture into a field that was previously not common in pre -clinical care in this form,” a spokesperson added.
Often seconds decide on life and death
In the procedure, however, Krammel consciously strives for delimitation: “We are not surgeons.” “What we do here is really an absolute emergency measure as part of the revival when the heart has stopped beating.” Because seconds are often crucial about the life or death of a patient, Krammel explained.
“Heart massage and defibrillator do not bring anything”
Past experiences in the rescue system showed that acute blood loss, a collapse of the lung, the lack of oxygen or a blood accumulation in the pericardium would have led to a – often ultimately fatal – circulation file.
“And the heart massage and the defibrillator do not bring anything. We cannot help our patients otherwise – except with this emergency measure, to take them to the hospital as quickly as possible, “said Krammel. “Otherwise you wouldn’t have a chance to survive.”
Survival percentage at 35 percent
In this context, he referred to studies into the survival percentage after a “Clamshell Thoracotomy” because of a heart injury. Accordingly, 35 percent of the treated lived in life as a result of such treatment remained. In 2022, after years of considerations, it finally came at the start of a training project for the “Clamshell Thoracotomy”.
Procedure used several times since 2023
In January 2023, the professional rescue had to fall back on the new measure for the first time. At that time, a 60-year-old loud had hit the door of his neighbor in Kienmayergasse in Penzing in Penzing. After a subsequent shot of photography with the police, the man was shot by Cobra officials and eventually died despite the emergency treatment. A total of three missions with Clamshell Thoracotomy were counted in 2023. In 2024 treatments for five people. Two of them survived their injuries, most recently a young mother of two in August 2024 in Vienna Penzing after life-threatening stab wounds. “And that is exactly why we do it.”
Source: Krone
I am Wallace Jones, an experienced journalist. I specialize in writing for the world section of Today Times Live. With over a decade of experience, I have developed an eye for detail when it comes to reporting on local and global stories. My passion lies in uncovering the truth through my investigative skills and creating thought-provoking content that resonates with readers worldwide.
