As of: February 1, 2024, 9:44 a.m
By: Juliane Gutmann
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Tunnels that lead to the light: Typical near-death experiences are probably more common than many people previously assumed.
A team of researchers has looked into the topic.
Around 65,000 people in Germany suffer a sudden cardiac arrest every year.
In around 60,000 of them it is fatal, according to the German Society for Cardiology – Heart and Circulation Research (DGK).
Sudden cardiac arrest is often preceded by ventricular fibrillation.
According to the DGK, the heart chambers repeatedly contract very quickly due to disordered electrical excitations.
As a result, those affected lose consciousness.
If you find an unconscious person who is no longer breathing, chest compressions must be given immediately, as the German Red Cross informs.
If this does not happen, the patient's chances of survival decrease enormously.
Every minute in which a person is not treated with chest compressions after a sudden cardiac arrest, the probability of survival decreases by 10 percent, according to the DGK.
You can read here how you can easily perform chest compressions.
Cardiac arrest survivors share their experiences
A group of researchers looked into how survivors feel about cardiac arrest.
The scientists published their findings, which they had gained by interviewing 24 men and four women,
in the specialist journal
Resuscitation .
These were patients who were resuscitated after a cardiac arrest between May 2017 and March 2020 in mainly English hospitals, as the news portal
Focus
informs.
Anyone who masters chest compressions greatly increases a heart patient's chances of survival in an emergency.
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One in five people remembers near-death experiences, the researchers concluded.
They conclude from their study that people may be able to have experiences and perceive things despite cardiac arrest and unconsciousness.
The project was led by cardiologist Sam Parnia from New York University, who specializes in near-death research.
Floating in space or stuck in a tunnel: common near-death experiences
Around 21 percent of cardiac arrest survivors surveyed had experienced near-death experiences.
A second study of 126 people who were also resuscitated after a cardiac arrest showed similar values, as the researchers led by Sam Parnia write in their study.
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Reports of the feeling of leaving one's own body and floating in space are considered a typical near-death experience.
Tunnels in which one is pulled towards a light are also frequently reported as near-death experiences.
More information about the study
“AWAreness during REsuscitation - II: A multi-center study of consciousness and awareness in cardiac arrest”
Release date
: July 2023
Study period
: May 2017 to March 2020
Published
in the journal
Resuscitation
Study authors
: Research team led by Sam Parnia from the Grossman School of Medicine at New York University
This article only contains general information on the respective health topic and is therefore not intended for self-diagnosis, treatment or medication. It in no way replaces a visit to the doctor. Unfortunately, our editorial team cannot answer individual questions about medical conditions.