Mortality from sudden cardiac arrest is higher in COVID-19 patients

Sudden sudden heart attack is usually fatal in people with COVID-19, a new study shows. Those responsible for the research see the results as a wake-up call for both the public and care providers.

The survey is now published in the Journal of the Heart of Europe is a table-based observational study. It covers all 3,026 cases of sudden cardiac arrest reported to the Swedish Register for Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation in the period from 1 January to 20 July 2020 – that is, both before and during the whole disease -discharged.

Registry statistics show that, in Sweden, there are 6,000 cases of sudden cardiac arrest each year where the person is not admitted to hospital. About 600 of these people are alive. The corresponding figures for cardiac arrest during patient care are within 2,500 cases and 900 survivors.

The findings of the study show that mortality from sudden cardiac arrest is higher if the individual has COVID-19, but that different patient groups show different differences in mortality rates.

During the study period, 1,946 cases of sudden cardiac arrest outside of hospitals were recorded. In 10 percent of the cases in this group, the individual had COVID-19, and the risk of a fatal outcome was 3.4 times higher for these individuals than for other members of the group.

Of the 1,080 cases of sudden cardiac arrest that occurred in hospitals, COVID-19 was present in 16 percent. Among patients with COVID-19, mortality was 2.3 times higher than those in this group.

The largest mortality difference was noted in the group of women who were already receiving patient care at the time of the heart attack. In these women, chronic COVID-19 infection was associated with a nine-fold increased risk of fatal outcome in the initial months and a seven-fold risk from April onwards.

The study, conducted by researchers at the Swedish Program for Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation and the University of Gothenburg, received financial support from the Swedish Lung Foundation. The quick funding action of this Foundation was crucial for its implementation, emphasizes Araz Rawshani, registrar and researcher at the Faculty of Medical Sciences, Sahlgrenska Academy, who also works at Sahlgrenska University Hospital.

We hope our findings will help raise awareness of COVID-19 problems among the general public, care providers, and decision-makers. That could improve care and move resources for high-risk patients. “

Araz Rawshani, Researcher, Faculty of Medicine, Sahlgrenska Academy

Kristina Sparreljung is Secretary General of the Swedish Lung Foundation.

“We hope these findings will help enable more life-saving opportunities. This study is a direct result of the emergency donation made by the Heart-Lung Foundation for research on COVID-19 linked to cardiopulmonary disease on back in the spring of 2020, “she says.

The survival rate for heart attack has risen successfully in recent years, but mortality remains high. Surviving a sudden out-of-hospital cardiac arrest requires, until an ambulance arrives, immediate action in the form of cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and the use of an automated external defibrillator (AED).