The Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation is dedicated to bringing you the latest news and developments in sudden cardiac arrest prevention and treatment.
National Cardiac Arrest Collaborative Update
The Steering Committee of the National Cardiac Arrest Collaborative recently reported on current activities related to the recommendations of the IOM Report: Strategies to Improve Cardiac Arrest Survival – A Time to Act. Recommendation 8. Create a National Cardiac Arrest Collaborative. The Steering Committee reached out to the US Department of… Read More
Resuscitation Science, Technology and Emergency Dispatch Services Leaders Commit to Help Double Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest Survival by 2028
Resuscitation quality improvement program, protocols for telecommunicators core components to improve survival rates DALLAS, TX--The American Heart Association states more than 350,000 out-of-hospital cardiac arrests occur in the U.S. annually. Cardiac arrest is a life-threatening condition with about a 10-minute life expectancy without immediate… Read More
Life After Life: Does Consciousness Continue After the Heart Stops?
How can people brought back from death after cardiac arrest report having experienced lucid and vivid memories and recollections without a functioning brain? The study of near-death experiences is challenging the idea our consciousness fades to black when our body expires. He could see a nurse and doctor, a bald, “chunky fella” dressed in blue… Read More
Telephone CPR Could Save Lives, But Only a Handful of States Require Dispatchers to Be Trained for It
When someone calls 911, the time it takes for paramedics to arrive can be the difference between life and death. Minnesota lawmaker Julie Sandstede knows this. She represents a rural area, where ambulances may take longer to arrive on the scene of a medical emergency. When her husband experienced cardiac arrest in 2011, the dispatcher sent the… Read More
HeartHero Personal Automated External Defibrillator Wins ACC.19 Innovation Challenge
Medical device startup HeartHero was the winner in the Innovation Challenge at the 2019 American College of Cardiology (ACC) conference, March 16-18 in New Orleans, for its ultraportable, affordable and user-friendly automated external defibrillator (AED). Co-hosted with AngelMD, the ACC.19 Innovation Challenge provided a platform for a select… Read More
Compression-Only CPR Increases Survival of Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest
Study Highlights: In a Swedish study of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest, bystander CPR rates nearly doubled and compression-only, or Hands-Only CPR, rates increased six-fold over the 18-year review. Compression-only and standard CPR – with chest compressions and rescue breaths – were associated with doubled survival rates compared with no… Read More
Hackers Can Take Over Heart Devices, DHS warns
Any connected device these days is a potential target of hackers—and that now includes defibrillators. Implantable defibrillators made by Minneapolis, Mn.-based Medtronic could allow an attacker to interfere with and collect sensitive data from the devices, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said in a medical advisory. A defibrillator is… Read More
PTSD After Cardiac Arrest Predicts More Heart Trouble
Survivors of cardiac arrest are more likely to experience further heart trouble—and even death—if they have symptoms of PTSD when discharged from the hospital, according to a new study from researchers at Columbia University Irving Medical Center. “Because nearly a third of cardiac arrest survivors in our study reported PTSD symptoms, finding… Read More
Commonly Used Heart Drug Associated with Increased Risk of Sudden Cardiac Arrest
LISBON, PORTUGAL--A drug commonly used to treat high blood pressure and angina (chest pain) is associated with an increased risk of out-of-hospital sudden cardiac arrest, according to results from the European Sudden Cardiac Arrest network (ESCAPE-NET) presented today at EHRA 2019. Sudden cardiac arrest causes around half of cardiac… Read More