Historical collection · First published Jun 10, 2026; added to EM Weekly Oct 27, 2026. This retrospective summary may be superseded by later evidence or guidance.
← All articlesConservative Oxygen for Unresponsive Patients after Cardiac Arrest
Summary
This trial enrolled 1,840 ventilated adults who remained unresponsive after cardiac arrest. Conservative oxygen did not improve favorable functional survival at 180 days compared with a liberal strategy.
Why it matters
The studied restrictive oxygen protocol did not improve long-term recovery. Do not extrapolate the result to initial resuscitation before oxygenation can be measured reliably.
Study at a glance
- Design
- Randomized trial
- Population
- Unresponsive ventilated adults after cardiac arrest in 53 ICUs.
- Sample size
- 1840
- Intervention
- SpO2 lower limit 90%, upper alarm 95%, permitting FiO2 reduction to 0.21.
- Comparator
- Same lower SpO2 limit, no upper saturation limit, minimum FiO2 0.30.
- Primary endpoint
- Survival with GOS-E at least 5 at 180 days.
Main findings
- Favorable functional survival: 38.2% versus 39.7%; RR 0.97 (95% CI 0.87-1.09).
- No adverse events were reported in the abstract.
Limitations
ICU population rather than active arrest; primary outcomes were available for fewer patients than enrolled. The confidence interval does not establish equivalence.
Read the primary source
Full text: Abstract available; full text paywalled.
Original sourcePMID: 42267831
Material reviewed: abstract.
Source retrieved Oct 27, 2026. Abstract reviewed; full text unavailable. Complete indexed PubMed abstract reviewed; June 10 first-online date independently confirmed on publisher page. August print date was excluded.
Corrections & review history
No corrections recorded. Human review: not yet human-reviewed.