Are there definitive treatments for sudden cardiac arrest?
The underlying causes of predisposition to sudden cardiac arrest are varied and no fundamental treatment currently exists. However, the primary symptom of SCA – the life-threatening arrhythmia – can be stopped with a defibrillation device that restores the heart’s natural rhythm by applying an electrical shock. Defibrillation can be achieved through an automatic external defibrillator (AED), which are used by paramedics and first responders and are becoming increasingly deployed on airplanes and other venues where emergency medical response may be less accessible, or through an implanted cardioverter defibrillator (ICD). Increasingly, physicians are implanting small cardioverter defibrillators in their high-risk patients as a prophylactic means for averting sudden cardiac death. Anti-arrhythmic drugs such as Amiodarone are also used with high-risk patients. Other drugs such as Beta blockers have also been shown to reduce cardiac arrest risk. Dr. Singer is Executive Medical Director of
