Summary

The American Heart Association estimates that ∼163,221 out-of-hospital sudden cardiac arrests occur annually in the United States with a median reported survival-to-discharge rate of 6.4%. However, there are wide variations in both the incidence of cardiac arrest (200%) and survival rates (500%) [Nichol G et al. JAMA 2008]. Although analyses are ongoing to identify potential reasons for these inconsistencies, and the variability in incidence may be associated with regional variances in clinical risk factors, economic disadvantage, population density, primary/secondary prevention strategies, and, possibly, incomplete episode capture.