Every year, the American Heart Association, Centers for Disease Control, and National Institutes of Health are tasked with reporting the Sudden Cardiac Arrest Survival Rate Statistics within the United States. Although this information is crucial for healthcare professionals to make better resuscitative decisions, it is unfortunately buried within a 241 paged journal (yes, really!) that anyone living and breathing would not dare to touch. On the contrary and for the sake of this article, I have spared you the eye strain (you’re welcome), and have compiled just for you the “TLDR” (aka “Too Long; Didn’t Read”) version along with a simplified interpretation. *All statistics are derived from “Circulation” - Journal of the American Heart Association. Survival rates represent survival to hospital discharge.

Latest 2016 Sudden Cardiac Arrest Statistics:

• More than 350,000 Americans outside of a hospital had acute incidences of Ventricular Fibrillation, a deadly cardiac electrical rhythm that occurs when a patient’s heart does not beat adequately and reduces blood flow to the brain and other organs. This could be as a result of choking, drowning, trauma, electrocution, or other unknown cardiovascular etiology. This occurrence is known as Sudden Cardiac Arrest. Within hospitals, there had been 209,000 incidences.
• In these “Out-of-Hospital” incidences, approximately 49.1% of bystanders (overall) had engaged in CPR. Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) is the non-convoluted art of maintaining oxygenated blood circulation to the brain and other vital organs whilst awaiting for further (usually more advanced) care to arrive through a systemized process of performing high-quality chest compressions and delivering adequate rescue breaths with the early use of an AED.
• The survival rate of “Out-of-Hospital” incidences was 12% whilst “In-Hospital” incidences had a survival rate of more than double that, 24.8%. This is why you should be sure to be within a hospital the next time you anticipate going into Ventricular Fibrillation.
• The overall bystander CPR engagement had increased by 5% from 2012 with an increase in cardiac arrest survival by 0.6%

There is, however, a surefire way we can actually improve these statistics. It involves plastic dolls and the Bee Gees. Yes, it’s exactly what you’re thinking. Enroll in a CPR class, and do it now! With the rising perils of day to day life, and the increasing amount of Tide Pod consumption, it is imperative that all Americans are equipped with the lifesaving knowledge necessary to give the gift of life. We are all more than just numbers. Further Reading CPR Facts and Stats