The Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation is dedicated to bringing you the latest news and developments in sudden cardiac arrest prevention and treatment.
AHA/ACC Issue Heart Screening Recommendations for People 12-25
Healthcare professionals should include 14 key elements as a checklist for screening young people age 12-25 for congenital and genetic heart disease. If any of the elements are positive, further testing may be needed, but initial screening using electrocardiograms (ECG) to detect underlying genetic and congenital heart disease in this age group… Read More
The Rush to Save Joan Rivers
NEW YORK, NY--The call came in to 911 one second before 9:40 a.m. on Thursday, Aug. 28, from the staff at a clinic on East 93rd Street in Manhattan — a patient in cardiac arrest. The call was coded as “Segment 1,” the highest-level priority handled by 911, according to two New York City officials. Five minutes and 38 seconds later, at 9:45 a.m., a… Read More
Was Joan Rivers's Cardiac Arrest During a Medical Procedure Preventable?
Comedian Joan Rivers’s death last week after going into cardiac arrest during an outpatient procedure on her vocal cords a week earlier at a New York medical clinic has raised questions. The New York State Health Department is investigating whether the facility followed proper procedures, but cardiac arrest during surgery is rare, said Dr.… Read More
SCA Foundation Announces Expansion of Board of Directors
The Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation, a national 501(c)(3) organization based in Pittsburgh, PA, has announced that three healthcare leaders with a passion for saving lives have been elected to serve on its Board of Directors, namely: Kathryn Koenig, MBA, Vice-President, Strategic Planning, University of Chicago Medicine, Chicago, IL Carissa… Read More
Stony Brook CPR Training Draws About 1,000 People
About 1,000 people -- college students, families and community members -- gathered inside a sun-splashed Stony Brook University's Kenneth P. LaValle Stadium Sunday, but they weren't there for a Seawolves football game. They were assembled on the stadium's green field turf hoping to learn how to save a life by practicing hands-only CPR on one of… Read More
Joan Rivers’ Death Highlights Risks of Surgical Complications
Although perioperative cardiac arrest due to anesthetics occurs just 10.8% of time, according to the Mayo Clinic, it represents the most serious complication and can have devastating results, as witnessed by the recent death of comedian Joan Rivers. The 81-year-old’s heart stopped while under anesthesia during a throat surgery at a Manhattan… Read More
First UNC Patient Procedure in the Evera MRI Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillator Study is Successful
CHAPEL HILL, NC--In a new international clinical trial testing the safety of performing an MRI on a patient with an ICD, the first trial patient at UNC underwent the procedure in August 2014. Jennifer Schwartz, MD, assistant professor of cardiology, performed the MRI with excellent patient outcomes. The purpose of the Evera MRITM study is… Read More
Saved By An App
SPOKANE, WA--A baby boy is alive thanks to a mechanic who used a smartphone app to alert him of the emergency, KXLY reported. The 1-month-old stopped breathing at the Empire Dance Shop in Spokane, Wash., where a store clerk called 911 before starting rescue breathing techniques on the child. “When you hear that you just pick up the phone and call… Read More
Study Links Sex Hormone Levels in the Blood to Risk of Sudden Cardiac Arrest
LOS ANGELES, CA--Measuring the levels of sex hormones in patients' blood may identify patients likely to suffer a sudden cardiac arrest, a heart rhythm disorder that is fatal in 95 percent of patients. A new study, published online by the peer-reviewed journal Heart Rhythm, shows that lower levels of testosterone, the predominant male sex hormone… Read More