Cardiac arrest symptoms, causes: This procedure can save lives

Lucknow: Seven out of 10 cardiac arrest victims can be saved if they are timely given cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), KGMU doctors have said.

Professor Aditya Kapoor, head of the cardiology department at the Sanjay Gandhi Postgraduate Institute of Medical Sciences (SGPGIMS), said an interruption in electrical impulses triggers cardiac arrest. The heart stops sending blood to vital organs and the brain starts to die within minutes. If no one helps the patient, death is certain.

This is what happened when AJP Abdul Kalam suddenly collapsed while giving a lecture. He said he could have been saved had someone given him CPR.

He said that the same thing happened in the case of actress Reema Lagoo.

Sudden cardiac arrest kills two million people every year in India.

He said sudden cardiac arrest is different than a heart attack. During a heart attack, blood circulation stops due to blockage that induces chest pain, discomfort, and pain in the arms, back, neck, jaw, teeth, and upper belly. Besides cold sweat, fatigue, heartburn or indigestion and dizziness can also be symptoms.

In SCA, patients collapse suddenly with no pulse or breathing.

People who have unknown heart defects, diabetes, high blood pressure, and obesity are more likely to get the disease.

"CPR helps blood to reach the brain so it should be conducted till medical help arrives," the cardiologist said.

However, only trained members of the crowd can save lives.

"If pulse and breath are missing, CPR should be started and continued till medical help arrives," he added.

With inputs from IANS