Early WAKE-up Predictors After Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest

Launched by UNIVERSITY OF AARHUS · May 13, 2025

Keywords

ClinConnect Summary

The WAKE-OHCA trial is a research study focused on understanding how to better predict when patients who have experienced a cardiac arrest (when the heart suddenly stops beating) might wake up after being unconscious. The study specifically looks at individuals who have been resuscitated (brought back to life) and are still in a coma. Researchers will collect early monitoring data, like brain activity and eye responses, to find important signs that indicate a higher chance of waking up successfully.

To participate, patients need to be at least 18 years old and have had a cardiac arrest due to heart issues. They must also show signs of recovery, like stable circulation, and be unconscious at the time of enrollment. If you or a loved one qualifies, this study may offer valuable insights into recovery after a cardiac arrest. It’s important to note that certain medical conditions and treatments might make someone ineligible to join the study. Participants will receive close monitoring during the trial to help researchers gather important information about their recovery.

Gender

ALL

Eligibility criteria

• Inclusion Criteria:
• • Age ≥18 years
• • OHCA of presumed cardiac cause
• • Sustained ROSC, defined as persistent signs of circulation and no need for chest compressions or mechanical circulatory support for 20 minutes
• • Unconsciousness (GCS \<9) (patients not able to obey verbal commands) after sustained ROSC at the time of randomization
• Exclusion Criteria:
• • Females of childbearing potential if pregnancy is suspected (unless a negative HCG test can rule out pregnancy within the inclusion window)
• • Known bleeding diathesis (medically induced coagulopathy (e.g. warfarin, NOAC, clopidogrel) does not exclude the patient)
• • Suspected or confirmed acute intracranial bleeding
• • Suspected or confirmed acute stroke
• • Unwitnessed asystole
• • Known limitations in therapy and Do Not Resuscitate-order
• • Known disease making 180 days survival unlikely
• • Known pre-arrest CPC 3 or 4 functional status
• • \>3 hours (180 minutes) from ROSC to screening
• • Systolic blood pressure \<80 mm Hg despite fluid loading/vasopressor and/or inotropic medication (If the systolic blood pressure is recovering during the inclusion window of 180 minutes the patient may be included)
• • Use of intra-aortic balloon pump/axial flow device/ECMO (If the patient is weaned and the device is removed during the inclusion window of 180 minutes the patient may be included)
• • Temperature on admission \<30°C
• • Known allergy for dexamethasone or olanzapine
• • Ongoing (within 48 h) treatment with olanzapine or dexamethasone
• • Known back or hip condition that precluded the patients from being positioned with backrest from 0 to 45-degree angle
• • Known or suspected Long QT Syndrome (LQTS)
• • Known active fungal disease. Localized skin lesions do not exclude patients from inclusion
• • Estimated body weight \<45kg