Defibrillation News and Research

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Study highlights strikingly low numbers of defibrillators being used during out-of-hospital cardiac arrests

Defibrillators are being used in just one in ten cardiac arrests where the lifesaving devices are available, according to new research presented at the British Cardiovascular Society Conference in Manchester.

5 Jun 2023

Fewer resources associated with lower chances of survival after a cardiac arrest

Hospital inpatients have better prospects of surviving a cardiac arrest in large hospitals and well-resourced wards, and daytime cardiac arrests are also associated with better chances of survival, a University of Gothenburg thesis shows.

18 Apr 2023

Study reviews the diagnosis and treatment of acute myocarditis

Scientists have recently reviewed and summarized the evidence regarding diagnosing and treating acute myocarditis.

6 Apr 2023

Weak electrical pulses can stop certain life-threatening arrhythmias, study shows

Atrial and ventricular fibrillations are dangerous heart arrhythmias that claim millions of lives each year. Current treatment for them is a high-energy defibrillation shock that can be intensely painful and lead to further heart damage.

14 Dec 2022

Smartphone code blue notification may accelerate response to in-hospital cardiac arrest

Sixty seconds can make or break the outcome of a hospital "code blue" or cardiac arrest response. New research found a hospital code response team rushing to a patient in cardiac arrest may arrive at least one minute quicker and may also lead to better patient outcomes with the use of a smartphone emergency code notification system that activates the team through text messages.

31 Oct 2022

Wireless, battery-free pacemaker could make life easier for heart disease patients

Atrial fibrillation – a form of irregular heartbeat, or arrhythmia – leads to more than 454,000 hospitalizations and nearly 160,000 deaths in the United States each year. Globally, it is estimated that approximately 60 million people are affected by the condition.

28 Oct 2022

CPR training spans across India in advance of the World Restart a Heart Day

Only 2% of adults in India know how to perform CPR or cardiopulmonary resuscitation. The American Heart Association - the world's leading voluntary health organization devoted to longer, healthier, live for all - and the All India Institutes of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) - a group of autonomous government public medical universities– are working together to train more than 150,000 students, community health care workers and others in the public in multiple states within India to reverse this trend.

11 Oct 2022

Accessible school-based defibrillators for treating out-of-hospital cardiac arrests could save many lives

A study from the University of Warwick has found that school-based defibrillators (AEDs) that are accessible outside of school hours could be effective in treating over two-thirds of Out of Hospital Cardiac Arrests (OHCAs) within five minutes.

28 Jul 2022

New method to disrupt spiral waves may be a less painful way to defibrillate hearts

A spiral wave of electrical activity in the heart can cause catastrophic consequences. One spiral wave creates tachycardia -; a heart rate that's too fast -; and multiple spirals cause a state of disorganized contraction known as fibrillation.

26 Jun 2022

Experts issue new CPR guidance addressing highly contagious variants of SARS-CoV-2

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the American Heart Association and collaborating organizations, including the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Association for Respiratory Care, the Society of Critical Care Anesthesiologists and the American Society of Anesthesiologists, continue to provide interim guidance to address the latest scientific research related to the SARS-CoV-2 virus, particularly the Delta and Omicron variants.

24 Jan 2022

Simulation training improves nurses' response to code events

During in-hospital cardiac arrests, responding quickly and confidently to code events requires a cohesive team, clearly defined roles and timely defibrillation.

1 Dec 2021

Hyperinvasive approach is an effective treatment strategy for out-of-hospital cardiac arrest

A subgroup of patients who experienced an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) that did not respond to standard advanced cardiac life support (ACLS), were immediately transported to a cardiac care center, and placed on a device similar to a heart-lung bypass machine were more likely to have survived with good brain function six months later than similar patients who received standard care at the site where the OHCA occurred.

18 May 2021

Study shows CPR is the “gold standard” technique against other alternatives

A technique frequently portrayed in dramatic resuscitation scenes in television and film is among several alternative methods to CPR that have shown no benefit in saving lives in a review by University of Warwick researchers.

15 Feb 2021

Researchers report a case of S-ICD implantation in patient with ccTGA and DDD pacemaker

In a new publication from Cardiovascular Innovations and Applications; Yu Zhang, Wen-Long Dai, Can-Can Lin, Qiao-Yuan Li and Cheng-Jun Guo from Beijing Anzhen Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China consider implantation of an S-ICD in a patient with a DDD pacemaker and congenitally corrected transposition of the great arteries.

20 Nov 2020

Smartphone alert can aid laypersons in opioid overdose reversal

Without timely reversal, opioid overdose causes respiratory depression that may deteriorate into apnea, leading to brain injury and even death.

3 Aug 2020

Intravenous sodium nitrite does not help out-of-hospital cardiac arrest patients

Among patients who had an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest, intravenous sodium nitrite given by paramedics during resuscitation did not significantly improve their chances of being admitted to or discharged from the hospital alive, according to research presented at the American College of Cardiology's Annual Scientific Session Together with World Congress of Cardiology.

29 Mar 2020

Study uncovers how to more effectively use ECPR for better outcomes after cardiac arrest

People who suffer cardiac arrest usually have low likelihood of survival, especially if it happens out of the hospital.

24 Mar 2020

Researchers evaluate epinephrine use for treatment of pediatric OHCA

A loved one suffering cardiac arrest is an emotionally stressful time for families, but never more so than when the patient is a child. The very real potential for loss of life in these situations means that the way in which emergency responders treat out of hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) becomes even more crucial when dealing with pediatric patients.

14 Jan 2020

Study indicates opportunities to improve quality of in-hospital cardiac arrest care for dialysis patients

A new study indicates that there are opportunities to improve the quality of care for patients on dialysis who experience cardiac arrest while in the hospital, but survival rates are similar for these patients compared with patients not on dialysis.

7 Jan 2020

Early emergency care by bystanders can save lives of cardiac arrest victims

Only 8% of Americans survive cardiac arrest outside a hospital, but that percentage could increase significantly if bystanders recognize cardiac arrest and perform simple lifesaving tasks, a UVA Health physician says.

5 Dec 2019