Outcome from prehospital cardiac arrest in Melbourne, Australia

Abstract

Although the incidence and outcome of prehospital cardiac arrest have been reported for many cities, relatively few have originated from Australia. This study reviewed ambulance and hospital records of all patients who were in cardiac arrest when first attended by ambulance officers in metropolitan Melbourne between 1 February and 31 July 1995. Of 361 patients with a presumed primary cardiac cause of arrest, 113 (31%) were initially in ventricular fibrillation. The average ambulance response time was 9.4 minutes. Bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation was performed on 22% of patients. Ten patients (3%) were discharged alive from hospital of whom eight (2%) were to independent living at home. All survivors were in ventricular fibrillation when first seen. It is concluded that survival from prehospital cardiac arrest in Melbourne is low. Strategies to improve outcome are suggested.

Bir Isci Sagligi ve Guvenligi Uygulamasi olan Temel Ilk Yardim Egitiminin Incelenmesi

“…Çeşitli çalışmalarda öğrenim düzeyi yükseldikçe ilk yardım bilgi puanlarının da yükseldiği saptanmıştır (13,14).…”

Outcome after admission to ITU following out‐of‐hospital cardiac arrest: are non‐survivors suitable for non‐heart‐beating organ donation?

“…Out‐of‐hospital cardiac arrest is a major cause of death worldwide with an incidence of between 36 and 128 per 100 000 per year [5]. Reported survival rates range from < 5% to 35%[6, 7]. Successful resuscitation requires a co‐ordinated sequence of activities that include early activation of emergency services, early bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), rapid defibrillation, early advanced cardiac life support and early post‐resuscitation care.…”

Time to act

“…It is now three decades since Pantridge demonstrated that out of hospital defibrillation could prevent sudden cardiac death in the community 1 . The report by Bernard in this issue of Emergency Medicine 2 , describes a system with a low survival rate post cardiac arrest and reinforces the fact that sudden cardiac death remains the biggest cause of preventable death in at least one major metropolitan area of Australasia. The American Heart Association has promoted the concept of a “chain of survival” to explain the systemic changes necessary to improve survival from cardiac arrest 3 .…”