Type of arrhythmia at EMS arrival on scene in out-of-hospital cardiac arrest in relation to interval from collapse and whether a bystander initiated CPR.

• Outcome after cardiac arrest is strongly related to whether the patient has ventricular fibrillation at the time the emergency medical service (EMS) arrives on the scene. The occurrence of various arrhythmias at the time of EMS arrival among patients with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest was studied in relation to the interval from collapse and whether cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) was initiated by a bystander. The patients studied were all those with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest in Goteborg, Sweden, between 1980 and 1992 in whom CPR was attempted by the arriving EMS and for whom the interval between collapse and the arrival of EMS was known. In all, information on the time of collapse and the arrival of EMS was available for 1,737 patients. Among patients for whom EMS arrived within 4 minutes of collapse, 53% were found in ventricular fibrillation/tachycardia. There was a successive decline in occurrence of such arrhythmias with time. However, when the interval exceeded 20 minutes, ventricular fibrillation/tachycardia was still observed in 27% of cases. Bystander CPR increased the occurrence of such arrhythmias regardless of the interval between collapse and EMS arrival.

Subject headings

MEDICIN OCH HÄLSOVETENSKAP  -- Klinisk medicin -- Kardiologi (hsv//swe)

MEDICAL AND HEALTH SCIENCES  -- Clinical Medicine -- Cardiac and Cardiovascular Systems (hsv//eng)

Keyword

Adolescent

Adult

Aged

Arrhythmias

Cardiac

complications

Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation

Child

Child

Preschool

Emergency Medical Services

Female

Heart Arrest

complications

therapy

Humans

Infant

Male

Middle Aged

Prognosis

Time Factors

Ventricular Fibrillation

complications

Publication and Content Type

ref (subject category)

art (subject category)