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Resuscitation could save 10,000 more people a year

2021-06-27T01:22:30.561Z


Every year tens of thousands of people die in Germany after sudden cardiac arrest. It's not just the elderly who are at risk. One expert is certain: Thousands of people could be saved.


Every year tens of thousands of people die in Germany after sudden cardiac arrest.

It's not just the elderly who are at risk.

One expert is certain: Thousands of people could be saved.

Berlin - After the collapse of the Danish soccer player Christian Eriksen on Saturday in the European Championship preliminary round match against Finland, the shock is deep for many.

The Dane suffered cardiac arrest, was resuscitated and, according to experts, is now in stable condition.

But many people do not survive cardiac arrest.

Bernd Böttiger, Director of the Clinic for Anaesthesiology and Operative Intensive Care Medicine at the University Hospital in Cologne, speaks of at least 70,000 people who die of sudden heart failure in Germany every year - but there are probably even more. The cause of death is "sudden cardiovascular arrest almost as common as all cancers put together," said Böttiger of the German press agency. He is certain that if everyone knew how resuscitation works, “we could save an additional 10,000 lives here”.

On average, according to the expert, people affected by sudden cardiac arrest are in their mid-60s, around two-thirds of them are men.

The main cause can therefore be a heart attack or severe cardiac arrhythmias.

Inflammation of the heart muscle or the coronary arteries or congenital anomalies are less common.

With regard to Eriksen, who is only 29 years old, Böttiger says: "In younger, healthy people, all of these things are very, very rare, but not impossible." In athletes who have suffered cardiovascular arrest, inflammation could be decisive.

A flu or similar illness could possibly beat the heart unnoticed.

Cardiac arrest could then hit people out of the blue - "even if you are so active and receive good medical treatment," warns Böttiger.

Philipp Sommer, spokesman for the Rhythmology Working Group of the German Cardiac Society (DGK), points out that so-called ion channel diseases are also conceivable as triggers, especially in competitive athletes. Because competitive athletes normally undergo regular medical checkups and continuously perform at their best, they are unlikely to have a dysfunctional heart. In the case of hereditary ion channel diseases, the heart is "structurally completely in order," explains Sommer. Ultimately, it is a question of hereditary arousal disorders of the muscles or the nervous system, which are not noticed in normal medical checks.

But what should be done when the heart stops beating?

In an emergency, every second counts, emphasizes Böttiger.

Ultimately, no more blood is pumped through the body, which supplies the organs with oxygen.

The brain reacts most sensitively to a lack of oxygen.

"Without oxygen, the brain dies after three to five minutes." And the emergency doctor is usually not there that quickly.

If you experience sudden cardiac arrest in a person, three steps are decisive: "Check, call, press".

First of all, it must be checked whether the person in need is unconscious and not breathing or not breathing normally.

Then it is necessary to call for help - preferably via the emergency number 112. Afterwards, a quick, effective chest compressions, which everyone should be able to do, can save lives, says the expert.

The later it begins, the lower the chances of survival.

It is important to carry out the chest compressions as uninterrupted as possible in order to maintain the pumping function of the heart from the outside until the rescue service arrives, explains Böttiger. With both hands you have to press five to six centimeters deep in the middle of the chest - 100 to 120 times a minute. Orientation could be given by the beat of many well-known songs - such as "Stayin` Alive" by the Bee Gees or "Atemlos" by Helene Fischer.

If several people can provide first aid on site, it makes sense to take turns. If there was one person left, they could look for a defibrillator. Böttiger expressly warns against looking for this before the chest compressions. “Checking, calling, pressing is the duty, a defibrillator is the free choice.” In an emergency, Böttiger also warns against reluctance out of fear of injuring people. “I've never seen anyone push too hard. The important thing is: press really hard. "

In Germany, Böttiger, who is also chairman of the German Council for Resuscitation, sees a clear need to catch up in lay resuscitation.

Only in around 40 percent of cases did passers-by perform life-saving chest compressions as first aiders.

Countries like Denmark are much further ahead here.

"Just as anyone can ride a bike or almost everyone can swim, everyone should be able to revive."

The first aid course for the driver's license comes far too late - rather, from the seventh grade onwards, it takes at least two hours per school year in which children and young people learn resuscitation, demands Böttiger.

dpa

Source: merkur

All news articles on 2021-06-27

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