Cardiac arrest
hideA cardiac arrest, also known as cardiopulmonary arrest or circulatory arrest, is the abrupt cessation of normal circulation of the blood due to failure of the heart to contract effectively during systole.
A cardiac arrest is different from (but may be caused by) a heart attack or myocardial infarction, where blood flow to the still-beating heart is interrupted (as in cardiogenic shock).
"Arrested" blood circulation prevents delivery of oxygen to all parts of the body. Cerebral hypoxia, or lack of oxygen supply to the brain, causes victims to lose consciousness and to stop normal breathing, although agonal breathing may still occur. Brain injury is likely if cardiac arrest is untreated for more than five minutes, although new treatments such as induced hypothermia have begun to extend this time. To improve survival and neurological recovery immediate response is paramount.
Cardiac arrest is a medical emergency that, in certain groups of patients, is potentially reversible if treated early enough (See "reversible causes" below). When unexpected cardiac arrest leads to death this is called sudden cardiac death (SCD). The primary first-aid treatment for cardiac arrest is cardiopulmonary resuscitation (commonly known as CPR) which provides circulatory support until availability of definitive medical treatment, which will vary dependent on the rhythm the heart is exhibiting, but often requires defibrillation.
For more information about Cardiac arrest, read the full article at
Wikipedia.
This text uses material from Wikipedia and is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.
News tagged with cardiac arrest
More compressions, fewer interruptions lead to higher cardiac arrest survival
May 04, 2009 |
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Survival rates from out-of-hospital sudden cardiac arrest almost doubled when professional rescuers using cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) gave better chest compressions and minimized interruptions to them, according to ...
Chances of surviving cardiac arrest at home or work unchanged in 30 years
Dec 02, 2009 |
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The chance of surviving an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest has not improved since the 1950s, according to a report by the University of Michigan Health System.
Uninterrupted chest-compressions key to survival in cardiac arrest outside hospital setting
Sep 29, 2009 |
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Maximizing the proportion of time spent performing chest compressions during cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) substantially improves survival in patients who suffer cardiac arrest outside a hospital setting, ...
Heartbreak increases heart attack risk: study
Sep 15, 2009 |
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People mourning the loss of a loved one are six times more likely to suffer cardiac arrest, potential proof that you can indeed die of a broken heart, Australian researchers said Tuesday.
Survival rates for elderly patients receiving in-hospital resuscitation (CPR) did not improve from 1992 to 2005
Jul 01, 2009 |
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You don't have to be Michael Jackson to have this problem: The odds of surviving cardiac arrest after getting CPR in a hospital are slim and have not improved in more than a decade, a big Medicare study concludes.
Treatment lowers temp, saves patients in cardiac arrest
Dec 30, 2008 |
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Nearly 200,000 out-of-hospital incidents of sudden cardiac arrest occur among U.S. residents each year. For every minute care is delayed, survival is decreased.
Saving lives more efficiently: Cardiac arrest study may help EMS and ERs
Sep 23, 2008 |
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When someone's heart suddenly stops beating – a condition called cardiac arrest -- there's a lot that bystanders and ambulance crews can do to get it started again. But if the victim doesn't respond, when should such efforts ...
Dispatcher-assisted bystander CPR best choice for possible cardiac arrest signs
Dec 22, 2009 |
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Dispatchers should assertively give cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) instructions to bystanders who suspect someone is in cardiac arrest because the benefits from correctly recommending CPR for someone who needs it greatly ...
Cooling may benefit children after cardiac arrest
Dec 03, 2009 |
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When the heart is stopped and restarted, the patient's life may be saved but their brain is often permanently damaged. Therapeutic hypothermia, a treatment in which the patient's body temperature is lowered and maintained ...
CPR is successful without mouth-to-mouth, but not without oxygen
Nov 30, 2009 |
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People can survive cardiac arrest if they receive only chest compressions during attempts to revive them - as advised by the current American Heart Association guidelines. But they cannot survive without access to oxygen ...
IV drug treatment for out-of-hospital cardiac arrest may not improve long-term survival
Nov 24, 2009 |
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Patients with an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest who received intravenous (IV) drug administration during treatment, recommended in life support guidelines, had higher rates of short term survival but no statistically significant ...
Women suffering sudden cardiac arrest have lower prevalence of structural heart disease than men
Nov 17, 2009 |
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A woman who suffers sudden cardiac arrest is significantly less likely than a man to exhibit the decrease in the heart's pumping ability that is widely recognized as a precursor, says a new study in the Nov. 24 Journal of ...
Resuscitation and survival rates from out-of-hospital cardiac arrest nearly double (w/ Video)
Nov 16, 2009 |
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Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center and the Richmond Ambulance Authority have improved resuscitation and survival rates dramatically for cardiac arrest patients by training and equipping paramedics to begin lowering ...
Continuous chest compression-CPR improved cardiac arrest survival in Arizona
Nov 16, 2009 |
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The chance of surviving a cardiac arrest outside a hospital was found to be twice as high when bystanders performed continuous chest compressions without mouth-to-mouth breathing than when bystanders performed standard CPR. ...
Early cooling in cardiac arrest may improve survival
Nov 16, 2009 |
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Rapidly cooling a person in cardiac arrest may improve their chance of survival without brain damage, according to research presented at the American Heart Association's Scientific Sessions 2009.
