Is cardiac arrest reversible?
The treatment of cardiac arrest is a race against time because the brain is very sensitive to hypoxia and brain damage occurs usually after about 5 minutes of not receiving oxygen. Thus, treatment must also occur within 4-6mins. Since ventricular fibrillations occur in the majority of cases, the best treatment of cardiac arrest is defibrillation i.e. delivering a therapeutic dose of electrical energy to the heart using a defibrillator. The aim is to depolarize most of the heart muscles at the same time and give the SA node fibres the opportunity to resume normal pacemaker function since they are the fastest and will be the first to recover from the jolt. Unfortunately, most cardiac arrests happen outside the hospital setting where a defibrillator may not be available. In these circumstances, prompt CPR in form of Chest compressions and assisted ventilation have been shown to save lives by maintaining circulation and ventilation until help arrives or until heart beat is spontaneously restored. Automated external defibrillators 
are now often found in public places like shopping malls and can be used by bystanders to reverse a cardiac arrest. The cardiac thump, though less effective is another technique which works by the same principle as a defibrillator and can be used by a trained personnel to achieve the same objective. Many attempts at resuscitation are however unsuccessful even in a hospital setting especially if there are ongoing underlying anomalies.
are now often found in public places like shopping malls and can be used by bystanders to reverse a cardiac arrest. The cardiac thump, though less effective is another technique which works by the same principle as a defibrillator and can be used by a trained personnel to achieve the same objective. Many attempts at resuscitation are however unsuccessful even in a hospital setting especially if there are ongoing underlying anomalies.
Is cardiac arrest preventable?
As mentioned earlier, most cases of cardiac arrest are due to ischemic heart disease (IHD) which can be prevented by minimising the modifiable risk factors. These include smoking, high cholesterol levels, diabetes, and hypertension. Also early detection and management of ischemic heart disease will arrest the progression to myocardial damage and possible cardiac arrest. Symptoms of IHD include chest pain on exertion, in cold weather or emotional situations (angina pectoris) which may progress to acute severe chest pain not relieved by rest due to heart muscle damage (myocardial infarction or heart attack). It is therefore important to report any severe or recurring chest paint to your physician to rule out the possibility of IHD. Difficulty in breathing or swelling of the extremities may also occur due to weakness of the heart muscle (Heart failure). Unfortunately, not all cases of IHD are symptomatic (silent ischemia). Thus the best prevention is the primary prevention of ischemic heart disease by engaging in regular physical exercises, eating a healthy balanced diet low in saturated fat, avoiding smoking, maintaining optimal body weight/body mass index (BMI),screening for hypertension and maintaining good blood pressure control, screening for diabetes and maintaining good blood sugar control, screening for and treating hypercholesterolemia. This is important for everyone but even more important in individuals with the unmodifiable risk factors for IHD such as male gender, age above 40 and family history of ischemic heart disease.
The outcome of resuscitation from cardiac arrest varies from one individual to another. It ranges from full recovery, to recovery with only partial function, to being in coma for weeks, to death. Screen yourself and learn CPR today; you may just be saving your life or your neighbour’s.
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