The Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation is dedicated to bringing you the latest news and developments in sudden cardiac arrest prevention and treatment.
SCA Coalition Establishes Legislative and Regulatory Goals
The Sudden Cardiac Arrest Coalition, an ad hoc coalition of about 40 like-minded nonprofit organizations, has established is 2011-2012 legislative and regulatory goals. They are: Support FY 12 appropriations requests for Rural and Community Access to Emergency Devices (AED) program. Support Josh Miller Helping Everyone Access Responsible… Read More
Check Your Risk for Sudden Cardiac Arrest
The Heart Rhythm Society has issued a new heart risk assessment tool available at this link: http://www.ceondemand.org/hrs/ram/splash.php. By answering six quick questions, you can determine your risk--or that of a loved one.
Real Number of SCA Deaths in Europe is Unknown but Appears to Be Falling
MADRID, Spain - Efforts to reduce the number of sudden cardiac deaths (SCD) in Europe are hampered by a lack of reliable data on the incidence of sudden cardiac arrest. "SCD has been neglected for the past five to 10 years, as atrial fibrillation has become so much more popular, but we should talk more about this topic. The biggest problem with… Read More
Torrey Pines Bank Adds Defibrillators
SAN DIEGO--Torrey Pines Bank is the first bank in San Diego County to participate in the Public Access Defibrillation (PAD) Program through San Diego Project Heart Beat. As part of the program the bank has installed automated external defibrillators (AEDs) at all of its 11 branches throughout California and its corporate offices and all staff will… Read More
200,000 Patients Treated for Cardiac Arrest in U.S. Hospitals Annually
PHILADELPHIA--More than 200,000 people are treated for cardiac arrest in United States hospitals each year, a rate that may be on the rise. The findings are reported online this week in Critical Care Medicine in a University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine-led study. Though cardiac arrest is known to be a chief contributor to in-… Read More
Woman Dies at Her Own Funeral
Should funeral homes have automated external defibrillators? KAZAN, Russia--A woman died from a heart attack caused by shock after waking up to discover she had been declared dead--and was being prepared for burial. As mourning relatives filed past her open coffin the supposedly dead woman suddenly woke up and started screaming as she realized… Read More
ALTITUDE Study Shows ICD Therapy Saves Lives Without Increasing Mortality from Defibrillator Shock
SAN FRANCISCO – Inappropriate implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) shocks for atrial fibrillation/flutter lead to increased risk of death during the next several years, while inappropriate shocks for sinus tachycardia, supraventricular tachycardia, artifact, noise, or device oversensing are associated with the same survival as in patients… Read More
A Very Happy Father's Day: Son Saves Father with AED at Home
WEST PARIS, Maine — Wayne Millen worried for years that he'd die of a sudden heart attack. Genetically, his odds weren't good. His father died of a heart attack at age 66. His mother underwent heart bypass surgery when she was 66. His younger brother, after surviving two heart attacks in two years, died at age 53 of sudden cardiac arrest. "My… Read More
When It Comes to Saving Lives, Seconds Count!
Survival rates increase when AED is used less than 10 seconds after CPR pause TORONTO, Ont.--A new study has found the number of people who survive after suffering a cardiac arrest outside a hospital drops significantly if the pause between stopping CPR and using a defibrillator to administer an electric shock is longer than 20 seconds. The number… Read More