Abstract
Emergency neurological life support (ENLS) is an educational program designed to provide users advisory instruction regarding management for the first few hours of a neurological emergency. The content of the course is divided into 14 modules, each addressing a distinct category of neurological injury. The course is appropriate for practitioners and providers from various backgrounds who work in environments of variable medical complexity. The focus of ENLS is centered on a standardized treatment algorithm, checklists to guide early patient care, and a structured format for communication of findings and concerns to other healthcare professionals. Certification and training in ENLS is hosted by the Neurocritical Care Society. This document introduces the concept of ENLS and describes the revisions that constitute this second version.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Smith WS, Weingart S. Emergency neurological life support (ENLS): what to do in the first hour of a neurological emergency. Neurocrit Care. 2012;17(Suppl 1):S1–3.
Berkhemer OA, Fransen PS, Beumer D, for the MR CLEAN Investigators, et al. A randomized trial of intraarterial treatment for acute ischemic stroke. N Engl J Med. 2015;372(1):11–20.
Goyal M, Demchuk AM, Menon BK, for the ESCAPE Trial Investigators, et al. Randomized assessment of rapid endovascular treatment of ischemic stroke. N Engl J Med. 2015;372(11):1019–30.
Campbell BC, Mitchell PJ, Yan B, for the EXTEND-IA Investigators, et al. A multicenter, randomized, controlled study to investigate extending the time for thrombolysis in emergency neurological deficits with intra-arterial therapy (EXTEND-IA). Int J Stroke. 2014;9(1):126–32.
Hemphill JC 3rd, Greenberg SM, Anderson CS, et al. Guidelines for the management of spontaneous intracerebral hemorrhage: a guideline for healthcare professionals from the American heart association/American stroke association. Stroke. 2015;46:2032–60.
Nielson N, Wetterslev J, Cronberg T, et al. Targeted temperature management at 33 °C versus 36 °C after cardiac arrest. N Engl J Med. 2013;369:2197–206.
Moler FW, Silverstein FS, Holubkov R, for the THAPCA Trial Investigators, et al. Therapeutic hypothermia after out-of-hospital cardiac arrest in children. New Engl J Med. 2015;372:1898–908.
Emergency Neurological Life Support, Version 1.0, Smith WS and Weingart S, iBook, published Apple. https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/emergency-neurological-life/id935811703.
Acknowledgments
We wish to thank all of the co-chairs in Table 1 for their efforts, as well as Dr. Daryl Gress for providing peer review of the manuscripts. Becca Stickney from the Neurocritical Care Society has taken the administrative management of ENLS to a higher level. We wish to thank many contributors in Table 2 who provided extensive feedback on pharmaceutical aspects of each protocol and at the editorial level within their specialty. Lastly, to all those members of the Neurocritical Care Society who took time from their busy practices to provide feedback: these protocols are yours. Please use them to educate others outside of your craft so that all patients have access to the best care possible in those critical first hours.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Miller, C.M., Pineda, J., Corry, M. et al. Emergency Neurologic Life Support (ENLS): Evolution of Management in the First Hour of a Neurological Emergency. Neurocrit Care 23 (Suppl 2), 1–4 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12028-015-0170-5
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12028-015-0170-5