LAUSR

Introduction: The pandemic crisis of Covid-19 disease caused by novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 was associated with increased fear of infection among majority of population This retrospective observation aim to find out if the presence of augmented feeling of infectious disease transmission risk affect the willingness of lay people to provide resuscitation (CPR), which is considered to be an aerosol-generating procedure with high COVID-transmission risk 1,2 Methods: Retrospective analysis of the registry of the cardiac arrests in the capital city of the Czech Republic, which were dealt with by Prague Emergency Medical Services (EMS) during COVID-19 outbreak period (March and April 2020), compared to the same period of the year 2019 All EMS-resuscitated patients with pre-EMS-arrival out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (CA) were included Results: During the study periods, Prague EMS dealt with 74 CA in 2019 compared to 75 CA in 2020, respectively In 2019, Lay CPR was provided in 63 cases (85%), in 2020 in 65 cases (86%);p > 0 05 Mouth-to-mouth ventilation was provided in 4 cases in 2019 and 3 cases in 2020 (p > 0 05) Primary outcome (return of spontaneous circulation in the out-of-hospital environment) was achieved in 37 (2019) vs 32 (2020) cases (p > 0 05) We were also not informed about any case of non-willingness to provide layperson CPR, as happened in Australia 3 Conclusion: Willingness of lay people in the city of Prague to provide CPR was not affected by the pandemic situation in general The primary outcome was also not affected Despite the fact that reasons for this were not surveyed, the effect of telephone assisted CPR is playing a crucial role during the last decades 4