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	GENERAL CARDIOLOGY

 
Delayed defibrillation after in-hospital cardiac arrest: why the delay?
Prompt defibrillation after cardiac arrest with ventricular fibrillation (VF) or pulseless ventricular tachycardia (VT) has been associated with improved outcome. In an observational study of 369 hospitals participating in the National Registry of Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation, Chan et al identified 6789 patients who had an in-hospital cardiac arrest with either VF or VT and identified those factors associated with delayed defibrillation (>2 minutes). They then examined the association between delayed defibrillation and survival to hospital discharge. Three secondary outcomes were also evaluated: return of spontaneous circulation for at least 20 minutes after the onset of cardiac arrest, survival at 24 hours after the cardiac arrest and neurological and functional status at discharge.

The characteristics associated with delayed defibrillation included black race, non-cardiac admitting diagnosis, occurrence of cardiac arrest in a hospital with <250 beds, being in an unmonitored hospital unit and the arrest occurring during out of hours periods. The overall . . . [Full text of this article]