S-65
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Out-of-hospital early defibrillation to prevent sudden cardiac death: Piacenza Progetto Vita
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Alessandro Capucci, Daniela Aschieri, Alessandro Rosi.
Divisione di Cardiologia, Ospedale Civile, Piacenza, Italy
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Sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) claims an estimated 350000 lives
per year in the United States, representing a major public health problem. In Europe 40% of all death of
individuals who are 25-74 years of age are caused by cardiovascular disease. More people die each day
of potentially reversible ventricular fibrillation (VF) than of any other cause of death, reversible or not.
Studies have clearly demonstrated that survival rates are high when defibrillation treatment is
administered within the first few minutes following SCA. In three studies of cardiac arrest
occurring in supervised cardiac rehabilitation centers more than 90 percent of victims were
successfully resuscitated and patients were discharged from the hospital1,2.
Unfortunately, most cardiac arrest does not occur in supervised places and in more typical
community settings; victims of SCD rarely survive. Only 2-5 percent of victims of SCA can be
resuscitated with the commonly used emergency system of ambulances. The problem can be
resolved not by reducing furthermore the time of ambulance intervention but getting available
defibrillation to lay person.
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