By Steven Di Joseph -
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has released the findings from a large study of deaths from a number of causes including heart attacks and arrhythmias (abnormal heart rhythms).
A sobering finding of the study was that 47% of heart-related deaths occurred while the patient was in transit to a hospital. In addition, another 17% died near or in an emergency room.
The breakdown by gender of those who died while on the way to a hospital was 53% of the women and 42% of the men.
These figures indicate that (a) it is truly a matter of life and death to have early detection and treatment programs for heart disease that precede the need for hospitalization; and (b) immediate intervention with defibrillators and/or CPR should be a priority in order to aid those with heart-related problems in the critical period before they reach a hospital.
