Defibrillation News and Research

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Community responders fail to improve out-of-hospital cardiac arrest survival

Community first responders did not improve 30-day survival in patients with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest, according to results presented in a Hot Line session today at ESC Congress 2026.

31 Aug 2026

Artificial intelligence models show high accuracy in cardiac care

Cardiac arrest remains one of the most urgent and unforgiving medical emergencies, where every minute can determine survival and neurological recovery.

26 May 2026

New biorepository approach advances research on sudden cardiac arrest

A cutting-edge University of Cincinnati College of Medicine study has shown how emergency medicine researchers can partner with community emergency medical services nationwide to investigate the causes of sudden cardiac arrest.

24 Apr 2026

AEDs on planes could save lives, study urges global policy change

In-flight cardiac arrest is extremely rare, yet catastrophic, and responsible for up to 86 % of all deaths in the air. A new comprehensive literature review highlights systemic and policy shortcomings of current aviation safety standards, calling for global alignment.

3 Dec 2025

Updated CPR guidelines provide expanded recommendations for managing choking and opioid overdose

The "2025 American Heart Association Guidelines for Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) and Emergency Cardiovascular Care (ECC)," published today in the Association's flagship journal, Circulation, marks the first full revision of lifesaving resuscitation guidance since 2020.

22 Oct 2025

Defibrillator drones cut response times in out-of-hospital cardiac emergencies

Drones delivering defibrillators show promise in emergency response, but survival rates depend on effective dispatcher support and bystander AED confidence.

10 Sep 2025

Neutrophil peptide found to trigger dangerous heart arrhythmias

Following injury from a heart attack, immune cells called neutrophils release a peptide that punctures stressed heart cells and destabilizes their electrical activity.

4 Sep 2025

Food delivery riders could help speed defibrillator access in cardiac arrest emergencies

Inspired by an urgent need to improve timely defibrillation for out-of-hospital cardiac arrests (OHCA) in dense urban settings, a team of investigators developed a simulation that explored the potential of leveraging an existing food delivery network in Taipei City, Taiwan, to help address this challenge.

28 Aug 2025

Defibrillators and CPR cut marathon cardiac deaths in half, study shows

Researchers found that while the rate of cardiac arrests during U.S. marathons and half-marathons remained stable from 2010 to 2023, the likelihood of death from these events dropped by nearly half—thanks to faster emergency response and widespread use of defibrillators.

31 Mar 2025

FDA-approved devices used to treat cardiovascular diseases

Heart disease, also called cardiovascular disease, can have serious consequences. It's the leading cause of death for adults in the U.S. Medical devices approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, such as pacemakers and defibrillators, have extended and improved the lives of millions of people living with heart disease.

21 Feb 2025

Survival chances found to be significantly better for sports-related cardiac arrest

Most cases of cardiac arrest during sport are likely to be preventable. In addition, the emergency response with cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and defibrillators within the sports context can be improved.

19 Nov 2024

Updated recommendations stress importance of CPR for drowning victims

Updated guidance reaffirms the recommendation for cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and highlights the importance of compressions with rescue breaths as a first step in responding to cardiac arrest following drowning, according to a new, focused update to Special Circumstances Guidelines from the American Heart Association and the American Academy of Pediatrics.

12 Nov 2024

COVID-19 pandemic led to significant decline in cardiac arrest survival rates

Out-of-hospital cardiac arrest survival rates dropped significantly at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and have continued to remain lower than in the pre-pandemic years of 2015-2019, according to a preliminary study to be presented at the American Heart Association's Scientific Sessions 2024.

11 Nov 2024

Research unveils method for defibrillation using less energy

In a paper published this week in Chaos, by AIP Publishing, researchers from Sergio Arboleda University in Bogotá, Colombia, and the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta used an electrophysiological computer model of the heart's electrical circuits to examine the effect of the applied voltage field in multiple fibrillation-defibrillation scenarios.

5 Nov 2024

Quick defibrillator shocks critical for cardiac arrest survival

It is well known that acting quickly in the event of a cardiac arrest is important, but what does a quick initial shock with a defibrillator mean exactly for patients' chances of survival? Researchers from Amsterdam UMC analyzed the data of 3723 patients who had a cardiac arrest outside the hospital and concluded that for the first shock, every minute reduces the chance of survival by 6%.

28 Oct 2024

New defibrillation strategy could enhance survival rates in cardiac arrest

Joshua Lupton, M.D., has no memory of his own cardiac arrest in 2016. He only knows that first responders resuscitated his heart with a shock from a defibrillator, ultimately leading to his complete recovery and putting him among fewer than one in 10 people nationwide who survive cardiac arrest outside of a hospital.

23 Sep 2024

Energy drink intake linked to sudden cardiac events in patients with heart genetic disorders

Associations between energy drink consumption and the risk of cardiac events among patients with genetic heart diseases.

10 Jun 2024

EHRA 2024 explores prevention and treatment of heart rhythm disorders

Discover the hottest science in the prevention and treatment of heart rhythm disorders at EHRA 2024, a scientific congress of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC).

15 Mar 2024

A century of progress: American Heart Association's historic journey and future directions

Dramatic advances in the understanding and treatment of cardiovascular diseases have saved millions of lives in the 100 years since the founding in 1924 of the American Heart Association, the world's leading voluntary organization focused on heart and brain health for all.

13 Feb 2024

American Heart Association sets ambitious targets for cardiac arrest survival

Only 10% of people who experience a cardiac arrest survive. In new challenge goals outlined in the American Heart Association Emergency Cardiovascular Care 2030 Impact Goals and Call to Action to Improve Cardiac Arrest Outcomes, the American Heart Association's volunteer advisory Emergency Cardiovascular Care Committee makes the case for doubling survivorship to 20%.

29 Jan 2024