Acute cardiac care & resuscitation
Sex differences in epidemiology, care, and outcomes in patients with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest in China
Main finding · Age-standardized incidence rate of EMS-treated OHCAResult — go to the resultIncidence rate ratio 2.31 95% CI 2.26–2.36Authors' conclusion
In China, females demonstrated better prehospital resuscitation outcomes. However, this early advantage was lost by discharge. These findings highlight the need for integrated evaluation across prehospital and in-hospital care to inform disparity-reduction strategies.
Study context
- Population
- Emergency medical system (EMS)-treated out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) patients in China, BASIC-OHCA study, January 1, 2020 to December 31, 2020EMS-treated OHCA patients, 10,793 (32.1%) were females
- Participants
- 33,650 participants
- Exposure
- Females vs males
- Femalesn = 10,793
Methodological detailsmultivariable hierarchical logistic regression, prespecified subgroup analyses and interaction tests
- Multivariable hierarchical logistic regression
- Prespecified subgroup analyses and interaction tests
Main finding
As reported in the abstract
Age-standardized incidence rate of EMS-treated OHCA
Incidence rate ratio
2.31
95% CI 2.26–2.36
By group
Males vs Females
IRR 2.31 (95% CI 2.26–2.36)
Observational data: associations, not effects.
Further findings
| Outcome | Adjusted OR (95% CI) | |
|---|---|---|
| Prehospital return of spontaneous circulation · multivariable models | 1.21 (1.06–1.38) | |
| Survival to hospital admission · multivariable models | 1.33 (1.15–1.55) | |
| Survival to hospital discharge or 30 days · no significant sex difference | 0.85 (0.66–1.10) | |
| Favorable neurological outcome · no significant sex difference | 0.84 (0.62–1.14) | |
| 0.512Adjusted odds ratio (log scale) |
Resuscitation characteristics and prehospital care
- Females had less favorable resuscitation characteristics and prehospital care than males
Survival and favorable neurological outcome (subgroups)
- Females had lower odds of survival and favorable neurological outcome than males among patients aged ≥50 years, those with shockable rhythm, and those without prehospital epinephrine administration
Original publication
Sex differences in epidemiology, care, and outcomes in patients with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest in China. Resuscitation. Published 25 September 2026. doi:10.
Summarised from the published abstract; every number is checked against it