Purpose of review: Current Emergency Medical Service protocols rely on provider-directed care for evaluation, management and triage of injured patients from the field to a trauma center. New methods to quickly diagnose, support and coordinate the movement of trauma patients from the field to the most appropriate trauma center are in development. These methods will enhance trauma care and promote trauma system development.
Recent findings: Recent advances in machine learning, statistical methods, device integration and wireless communication are giving rise to new methods for vital sign data analysis and a new generation of transport monitors. These monitors will collect and synchronize exponentially growing amounts of vital sign data with electronic patient care information. The application of advanced statistical methods to these complex clinical data sets has the potential to reveal many important physiological relationships and treatment effects.
Summary: Several emerging technologies are converging to yield a new generation of smart sensors and tightly integrated transport monitors. These technologies will assist prehospital providers in quickly identifying and triaging the most severely injured children and adults to the most appropriate trauma centers. They will enable the development of real-time clinical support systems of increasing complexity, able to provide timelier, more cost-effective, autonomous care.