Articles tagged ‘sudden cardiac death’

Survival to discharge after out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OOHCA) improves dramatically with a reduction in ambulance response times, according to a study¹ published recently in Europace.

Up to 80% of sudden cardiac death (SCD) amongst women could be attributable to unhealthy lifestyle practices, according to a study published recently in the Journal of the American Medical Association.¹

The incidence and definition of sudden cardiac death (SCD) and sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) in the United States are poorly understood, requiring a standardised definition of both and ongoing research efforts to examine cases more broadly across communities, say the authors of a report¹ published recently in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

Are fish oils truly anti-arrhythmics, do they prevent sudden cardiac death and if so, how? These were among the questions addressed at a symposium during the recent British Cardiovascular Society (BCS) meeting in Manchester. Here we review some of the key messages from the meeting.

Haemodialysis patients are at increased risk of sudden death for many reasons. This important topic was reviewed by Dr Paul R Roberts, Consultant cardiologist and electrophysiologist, Southampton University Hospital, at a recent meeting of the Cardiorenal Forum. The author briefly reviews the data here also.

Data from the Paris Prospective Study (1) shows a higher risk for sudden death for those apparently healthy individuals whose heart rate responses are exaggerated under mild mental stress and below normal during peak exercise. Heart rate changes before an exercise test may therefore provide a simple tool for risk stratification.

A long-term study conducted in ICD recipients shows a high recurrence rate of potentially life-threatening ventricular arrhythmias. Factors that increase risk can be identified but, even with these factors, it was not possible to distinguish a recurrence-free group.

A US study published in Circulation [1] demonstrates that school based automatic external defibrillators (AEDs) provide high survival rates for both students and non students suffering sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) on school premises.

Mortality in dialysis patients is extremely high, with an annual death rate of ~ 23%. Sudden cardiac death (SCD) is the single largest cause of death in dialysis patients accounting for ~ 60% of all cardiac deaths and 25% of all-cause mortality. The current status of medical and device interventions is reviewed in a comprehensive publication in the European Heart Journal. [1]