Zoonotic Health Hazards in the Practice of Emergency Medical Service Teams – a Three-Year Observation

Abstract

The study comprised a 3-year retrospective analysis of trips by the MRTs from the northern part of the Lubelskie Province. The data was taken from records functioning in the State Medical Rescue Service (SMRS) system. Analysis period: 1.01.2020-31.12.2022. It is the analysis of emergency medical services calls justified by threat to health, life, or injury of the victim due to the action of insects, birds, reptiles, mammals as a result of direct contact with them (stinging, biting, scratching, hitting, kicking). Applying the inclusion and exclusion criteria, 72 emergency medical services trips representing 0.34% of the total interventions in local area. The population was divided according to the cause of the threat: insects n = 45, dogs n = 12, cattle (bull, cow) n = 15Men statistically more often suffered injuries than women 61% vs 39% (p=0.048). A statistically significant influence of the type of threat on the time of intervention was demonstrated; for dog hazards 39±25 min, insects 40±17 min; cattle 56±15 min; P = 0.015. There was a statistically significant difference in the use of pharmacology compared to the procedures described by ICD 10 codes (P<0.001). The impact of the type of threat on the need to transport the patient to the Emergency Department was not demonstrated. Hymenopterous insects are the most common type of zoonotic hazard on an annual basis, with an increase for the spring-summer months. There was a statistically significant difference in age for each type of hazard, the youngest of those injured were harmed by dogs, while the eldest were by insects. There was no statistically significant effect of place of residence (urban-rural) on the type of zoonotic injury.