Penn Bioethics Seminar Series (PBS): "Sociodemographic Disparities in Pediatric Out-Of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest", Cody Gathers, MD

Sociodemographic Disparities in Pediatric Out-Of-Hospital    Cardiac Arrest

Cody Gathers, MD

Fellow, Pediatric Critical Care, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia
Fellow, National Clinician Scholars Program, Perelman School of Medicine

Over 23,000 children in the United States sustain an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) each year, with less than 10% of children surviving with a favorable neurologic outcome. Moreover, persistent racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic disparities exist in bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). However, racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic disparities in the incidence of pediatric OHCA remain unknown. Utilizing a large, national pediatric cardiac arrest database, we found that Black children have over four times the OHCA incidence compared to White and Hispanic children, and children from the highest-risk SES neighborhoods have more than twice the OHCA incidence compared to children from the lowest-risk SES neighborhoods. Black children and children from the highest-risk SES neighborhoods have significantly worse OHCA survival outcomes. Targeted, community-based interventions in these high risk groups are urgently needed to reduce disparities in the incidence and survival after pediatric cardiac arrest. 

Lunch provided. Streaming available via Zoom