INTENSIVE CARE
The long-term impact of resuscitation
Only 10 percent of people survive a cardiac arrest outside hospital.
It’s wise to have opportunities to practice resuscitation. But all the same, few survive. | Image: Keystone / Chromorange / Michael Bihlmayer
Films often provide a false image of what resuscitation looks like during a cardiac arrest. It usually works, and everything soon goes on just as before. But the reality is different, says Sabina Hunziker, who’s head of medical communication at the University Hospital Basel.
For one thing, only 10 percent of people have long-term chances of surviving a cardiac arrest that happens outside of a hospital, regardless of being resuscitated. For those suffering a cardiac arrest in a hospital, it’s roughly 30 percent. And the interim results of a large-scale study now show that of these survivors, a third will still struggle with serious long-term consequences up to two years after being discharged from intensive care.
Survivors often suffer from irreversible muscle damage, cognitive deficits, depression and even post-traumatic stress disorder. “We are working on better educating people about these facts, especially with regard to those who want to fill out a living will”, says Hunziker, who also offers interdisciplinary consultations for people in the wake of critical illness.
