E97 - Bayes and Calcium Before Diltiazem in Atrial Fibrillation

The EMS Lighthouse Project

We covered a paper in episode 81 that suggested treating atrial fibrillation with rapid ventricular response in the field could lower mortality. But it also drops BP a bit. Could pretreating these patients with calcium lower the risk of hypotension? Dr Jarvis puts on his nerd hat and uses Bayesian analysis to assess a new randomized, placebo-controlled study that looked at just this thing. Why is he going off on this Bayes thing? Because he’s been reading a couple of book on it and wanted to take it for a spin.

Tables:

Charts:

Bayesian Distributions:

Citation:

1. Az A, Sogut O, Dogan Y, Akdemir T, Ergenc H, Umit TB, Celik AF, Armagan BN, Bilici E, Cakmak S: Reducing diltiazem-related hypotension in atrial fibrillation: Role of pretreatment intravenous calcium. The American Journal of Emergency Medicine. 2025;February;88:23–8.

2. Fornage LB, O’Neil C, Dowker SR, Wanta ER, Lewis RS, Brown LH: Prehospital Intervention Improves Outcomes for Patients Presenting in Atrial Fibrillation with Rapid Ventricular Response. Prehospital Emergency Care. doi: 10.1080/10903127.2023.2283885 (Epub ahead of print).

3. Kolkebeck T, Abbrescia K, Pfaff J, Glynn T, Ward JA: Calcium chloride before i.v. diltiazem in the management of atrial fibrillation. The Journal of Emergency Medicine. 2004;May 1;26(4):395–400.

4. Chivers T: Everything Is Predictable: How Bayes’ Remarkable Theorem Explains the World. Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 2024.

5. McGrayne SB: The Theory That Would Not Die. how Bayes’ Rule Cracked The Enigma Code, Hunted Down Russian Submarines & Emerged Triumphant From Two Centuries of Controversy. New Haven, CT, Yale University Press, 2011.