Surviving out-of-hospital cardiac arrest

Current challenges in sudden cardiac death prevention

Ischemic heart disease and non-ischemic dilated cardiomyopathy are the most common causes of arrhythmic sudden cardiac death (SCD). Implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) therapy is the only strategy that proved to be effective in preventing SCD in high-risk individuals while the role of antiarrhythmic drugs is limited to symptoms relief. Current guidelines recommend selecting candidates to ICD implantation based on etiology, symptoms of heart failure (NYHA class), and severely depressed left ventricular ejection fraction, but these parameters are neither sensitive nor specific. The review addresses the mechanisms of SCD in patients with heart failure of either ischemic or non-ischemic etiology, risk stratification, and strategies for prevention of SCD in the clinical practice (including optimization of heart failure therapy, avoidance of triggering factors, antiarrhythmic drugs, ICD therapy, early resuscitation, and public access defibrillators).

Development of Antiarrhythmic Therapy-Resistant Ventricular Tachycardia, Ventricular Fibrillation, and Premature Ventricular Contractions in a 15-Year-Old Patient

Sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) is the sudden cessation of regular cardiac activity so that the victim becomes unresponsive, with no signs of circulation and no normal breathing. Asystole, ventricular tachycardia (VT), ventricular fibrillation (VF), and pulseless electrical activity are the underlying rhythm disturbances in the pediatric age group. If appropriate interventions (cardiopulmonary resuscitation-CPR and/or defibrillation or cardioversion) are not performed rapidly, this condition progresses to sudden death. There have not been many reported cases of the approach and treatment of cardiac arrhythmias after SCA. Herein, we would like to report a case of a 15-year-old female patient with dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) who was admitted to our clinic a year ago, and while her left ventricular systolic functions were improved, SCA suddenly occurred. Since the SCA event occurred in another city, intravenous treatment of amiodarone was done immediately and was switch to continuous infusion dose of amiodarone until the patient arrived at our institution's pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) 3 hours later. During the patient's 20-day PICU hospitalization, she developed pulseless VT and VF from time to time. The patient's pulseless VT and VF attacks were brought under control by the use of a defibrillator and added antiarrhythmic drugs (amiodarone, flecainide, esmolol, and propafenone). Intriguingly, therapy-resistance bigeminy with premature ventricular contractions (PVCs) continued despite all these treatments. The patient did not have adequate blood pressure measured by invasive arterial blood pressure monitoring while having bigeminy PVCs. The intermittent bigeminy PVCs ameliorated rapidly after intermittent boluses of lidocaine. In the end, multiple antiarrhythmic therapies and intermittent bolus lidocaine doses were enough to bring her cardiac arrhythmias after SCA under control. This case illustrates that malign PVC's should be taken very seriously, since they may predispose to the development of VT or VF. Also, this case highlights the importance of close vigilance of arterial pressure tracings of patients with bigeminy PVCs which develop after SCA and should not be accepted as normal.

The use of an automatic defibrillator by non-sanitary personnel in sport areas: an Observational Study

Introduction:

In industrialized countries, sudden cardiac death is a serious public health problem that accounts for about 15% to 20% of all deaths, with an incidence of 0.5 to 3 deaths per 100,000 athletes. In recent years, although both first aid prevention programs and the availability of External Automatic Defibrillator (AED) in public places have increased, few data are available with respect to real knowledge about the use of such devices. The aim of this study is to detect the level of knowledge and skills in the use of automatic external defibrillators among sports and management staff in sports facilities.

Materials and Methods:

A cross-sectional, multicentre study conducted in 16 sports facilities in the Province of Lecce, Italy, and targeted to all the athletic and managerial staff of these sports facilities. Information was obtained through a validated questionnaire consisting of 27 items.

Results:

339 participants of which 59.3% male (n=201) (average=33.6; SD=13.1). 51.6% (n=175) were informed about the presence of the defibrillator, only 38.1% (n=129) declared to know where it was placed and 43.7% (n=96) considered it to be quite or very accessible. The majority of them (78.8%; n=267) were never involved in a training course and declared limited knowledge about the use of this device.

Conclusions:

Respondents stated that they have poor knowledge and skills in the use of the defibrillator, its operation and maintenance, which could reduce the positive outcomes of early treatment. Further studies should be conducted, although it may be appropriate to implement specific training courses for personnel working in sports centres. (www.actabiomedica.it)

Teaching Hands-Only CPR in Schools: A Program Evaluation in San José, Costa Rica

Background:

Hands-only bystander CPR increases survival from out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. Video-based CPR instruction in schools has been proposed as a means to mass-educate laypersons in Hands-only CPR™ (HOCPR), in developed as well as developing countries.

Objectives:

The purpose of this study is to determine whether a brief video- and mannequin-based instructional program, developed by the American Heart Association (AHA), is an effective strategy for teaching Costa Rican middle- and high-school age children to learn the steps of HOCPR.

Methods:

This study took place in four educational centers that spanned the entire socioeconomic spectrum within the Grand Metropolitan Area of Costa Rica. Three hundred and eight students from the sixth to eleventh grades participated. The intervention included exposure to the AHA “CPR Anytime” video and practice with CPR mannequins. Before and after the intervention, students took a four-question, multiple-choice quiz that measured their knowledge of the correct steps and proper techniques of HOCPR; a separate question assessed their level of comfort “doing CPR on someone with a cardiac arrest.” Pre- and post-intervention “percent correct” scores were compared and tested for statistical significance using paired t-tests or the McNemar test as appropriate. Improvement in knowledge and comfort levels were also compared across the different educational centers and compared with similar programs implemented in the United States.

Results:

The students’ overall scores (mean percent correct) on the multiple choice questions more than doubled after training (40.9% ± 1.4% before training vs. 92.5% ± 0.9% after training, p < 0.00001). Improvements were observed in each school, regardless of geographic location or socioeconomic status. Knowledge of the appropriate steps of HOCPR doubled after training (42.2% before training vs. 92.5% after training, p < 0.000001). Post-intervention, a majority (73%) of children reported comfort with performing CPR on an individual who had suffered a cardiac arrest.

Conclusion:

This study demonstrates the effectiveness of the AHA “CPR Anytime” program in teaching HOCPR to school-age children within the Grand Metropolitan Area of Costa Rica. Additional studies are needed to measure longer-term knowledge retention and students’ ability to perform CPR in simulated cardiac arrest settings.

Teaching Hands-Only CPR in Schools: A Program Evaluation in San José, Costa Rica

BACKGROUND

Hands-only bystander CPR increases survival from out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. Video-based CPR instruction in schools has been proposed as a means to mass-educate laypersons in Hands-only CPR™ (HOCPR), in developed as well as developing countries.

OBJECTIVES

The purpose of this study is to determine whether a brief video- and mannequin-based instructional program, developed by the American Heart Association (AHA), is an effective strategy for teaching Costa Rican middle- and high-school age children to learn the steps of HOCPR.

METHODS

This study took place in four educational centers that spanned the entire socioeconomic spectrum within the Grand Metropolitan Area of Costa Rica. Three hundred and eight students from the sixth to eleventh grades participated. The intervention included exposure to the AHA "CPR Anytime" video and practice with CPR mannequins. Before and after the intervention, students took a four-question, multiple-choice quiz that measured their knowledge of the correct steps and proper techniques of HOCPR; a separate question assessed their level of comfort "doing CPR on someone with a cardiac arrest." Pre- and post-intervention "percent correct" scores were compared and tested for statistical significance using paired t-tests or the McNemar test as appropriate. Improvement in knowledge and comfort levels were also compared across the different educational centers and compared with similar programs implemented in the United States.

RESULTS

The students' overall scores (mean percent correct) on the multiple choice questions more than doubled after training (40.9% ± 1.4% before training vs. 92.5% ± 0.9% after training, p &lt; 0.00001). Improvements were observed in each school, regardless of geographic location or socioeconomic status. Knowledge of the appropriate steps of HOCPR doubled after training (42.2% before training vs. 92.5% after training, p &lt; 0.000001). Post-intervention, a majority (73%) of children reported comfort with performing CPR on an individual who had suffered a cardiac arrest.

CONCLUSION

This study demonstrates the effectiveness of the AHA "CPR Anytime" program in teaching HOCPR to school-age children within the Grand Metropolitan Area of Costa Rica. Additional studies are needed to measure longer-term knowledge retention and students' ability to perform CPR in simulated cardiac arrest settings.

Prehospital Predictors of Initial Shockable Rhythm in Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest: Findings From the Taichung Sudden Unexpected Death Registry (THUNDER)

OBJECTIVE

To identify the incidence and prehospital predictors of ventricular tachycardia/ventricular fibrillation (VT/VF) as the initial arrhythmia in patients with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) in central Taiwan.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

The Taichung Sudden Unexpected Death Registry program encompasses the Taichung metropolitan area in central Taiwan, with a population of 2.7 million and 17 destination hospitals for patients with OHCA. We performed a detailed analysis of demographic characteristics, circumstances of cardiac arrest, and emergency medical service records using the Utstein Style.

RESULTS

From May 1, 2013, through April 30, 2014, resuscitation was attempted in 2013 individuals with OHCA, of which 384 were excluded due to trauma and noncardiac etiologies. Of the 1629 patients with presumed cardiogenic OHCA, 7.9% (n=129) had initial shockable rhythm; this proportion increased to 18.8% (61 of 325) in the witnessed arrest subgroup. Male sex (odds ratio [OR], 2.45; 95% CI, 1.46-4.12; P<.001), age younger than 65 years (OR, 2.39, 95% CI, 1.58-3.62; P<.001), public location of arrest (OR, 4.61; 95% CI, 2.86-7.44; P<.001), and witnessed status (OR, 3.98; 95% CI, 2.62-6.05; P<.001) were independent predictors of VT/VF rhythm.

CONCLUSION

The proportion of patients with OHCA presenting with VT/VF was generally low in this East Asian population. Of the prehospital factors associated with VT/VF, public location of OHCA was the strongest predictor of VT/VF in this population, which may affect planning and deployment of emergency medical services in central Taiwan.