AED Usage Stats
AED Usage: Statistics
Automated external defibrillator (AED) use can make the difference between life and death.
According to the American Heart Association (AHA) and European Resuscitation Council (ERC), a sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) victim requires defibrillation to stop ventricular fibrillation (VF), an often-fatal heart condition. In fact, the only known treatment for sudden cardiac arrest is a shock from a defibrillator, administered as quickly as possible.
The defibrillation shock can originate from a manual defibrillator (administered by a medical professional trained in Advanced Life Support) or from an automated external defibrillator (administered by a trained bystander).
It’s estimated that more than 95 percent of cardiac arrest victims die before reaching the hospital.1
A victim’s chances of survival are reduced by 7 to 10 percent with every minute that passes without CPR and defibrillation. Few attempts at resuscitation succeed after 10 minutes.1
The sooner the defibrillation shock the better because each minute the brain goes without oxygen diminishes the likelihood the victim will return to a “normal life” – even if resuscitation does occur within 10 minutes.
Because time is precious in an SCA emergency, an automated external defibrillator is critical. A typical community without readily accessible defibrillation is challenged to meet the deadline.
• The average call-to-shock time for a “typical community” is 9 minutes.2
• Median response time is 6.6 minutes for emergency medical services in mid-sized urban communities.3
• In cities, rush hour traffic or crowded elevators in high-rise buildings further delay emergency response.4
Prevalence and risk factors
Extrapolation of the mortality rate observed in the Resuscitation Outcomes pulation of the United States suggests that each year, there are 295,000 emergency medical services (EMS)–assessed out-of-hospital cardiac arrests in the United States.
Sudden cardiac arrest knows no age limit. It can strike anyone, at any time. As many as 7,000 children are struck down by sudden cardiac arrest each year.6
For perspective, sudden cardiac arrest takes more lives in America each year than breast cancer, prostate cancer, house fires8, firearms7, traffic accidents7, and AIDS7 combined.
The risk factors associated with sudden cardiac arrest are similar to those commonly associated with heart disease. They include high cholesterol, high blood pressure, smoking, obesity, congenital heart disease, and diabetes. Other factors can cause cardiac arrest including respiratory arrest, electrocution, drowning, choking, and trauma.9
But 50 percent of men and 64 percent of women who suffered sudden cardiac arrest had no previous symptoms of coronary heart disease.10
Impact of AEDs in community
In cities where defibrillation is provided within 5 to 7 minutes, the survival rate from sudden cardiac arrest is as high as 30–45 percent.1 Other examples show survival rates as high as 86 percent in some cases.11
Nearly 60 percent of all cardiac arrests are witnessed12, so if an AED is nearby, chances the patient will receive timely defibrillation therapy is improved. It’s estimated that improved access to AEDs could save 40,000 lives a year in the U.S. alone13 — the equivalent of a cure for breast cancer.
The American Red Cross advocates AED usage. It advises, “Make sure that at least one member of your household is trained in first aid and CPR and knows how to use an automated external defibrillator (AED).”15
Case studies: AED use
Research studies, communities with public access defibrillation programs, and individuals who have used AEDs agree:
• AEDs are dependable and easy to use.
• AEDs helped revive people who otherwise would have died.
Student Saves on Campus
Schools often function as community centers and have high number of people on campus at any given time. A recent study showed that 64 percent of SCA victims in US high schools equipped with AEDs survived to hospital discharge.16
16-year-old survivor Kaitlin Forbes was saved with a Powerheart AED on school campus. 6-year-old survivor Emiliano Vela was saved by the school nurse with a Cardiac Science defibrillator.
A classic study of the successful use of AEDs by non-medical personnel is in the casino industry: The New England Journal of Medicine article described how a combination of good AED placement and training for casino security guards resulted in a 59 percent survival rate for ventricular fibrillation victims when the person was witnessed collapsing.
For victims who received a shock within three minutes of collapse, survival rate was 74 percent.17 Cardiac Science Powerheart AEDs at Harrah’s Entertainment locations have saved more than 200 lives.
San Diego Project Heart Beat
Cardiac Science Powerheart AEDs are deployed throughout the San Diego area as part of the community’s groundbreaking Project Heart Beat. Since its inception the project has saved 62 lives among 147 attempts, a 42 percent success rate. The project inspired the state of Nevada, the City of Minneapolis, and others to launch Project Heart Beat initiatives of their own (also selecting Cardiac Science as the preferred AED manufacturer).
nes, are increasingly common on passenger trains. Science AEDs, has used a defibrillator in an emergency
situation 50 times between 2001 and 2009. In 17 cases, the patient was admitted to the hospital in stable condition, a 34 percent success rate.
UK Defibrillation Programme
A 2005 study of public defibrillators in England found that, of 177 witnessed cases of sudden cardiac arrest treated with AEDs, 44 people survived to hospital discharge – a survival rate of 25 percent.18
St. Margaret’s Hospital Foundation
Cardiac Science Powerheart AEDs are deployed throughout Pittsburgh area as part of St. Margaret’s Hospital program called PULSE. Seventeen saves have been made with Cardiac Science AEDs since 2007.
Cardiac Science AED Program Management customers
Among customers who choose Cardiac Science’s AED Program Management services to help them manage their AED programs, six reported deployments allowed patients to be admitted to the hospital in stable condition.
Recent and Pending AED Legislation
Connecticut Senate Bill 981 was inspired by the 2007 sudden cardiac death of 15-year-old Larry Pontbriant after he collapsed during an annual race. The Connecticut AED in Schools legislation mandates at least one automated external defibrillator (AED) and at least one trained AED responder, provided that the school has money in the budget.
Oregon Senate Bill 556 mandates AEDs for businesses with facilities of 50,000 square feet or more that have more than 25 visitors per day.
California is now considering a bill to exempt from liability any organization that makes an AED available to the public.
All 50 states have “Good Samaritan” laws that encourage AED use by protecting laypersons that use a defibrillator to respond to a medical emergency.
Cardiac Science is dedicated to making every community a heart-safe one. We promote AED awareness and publicly accessible defibrillation.
AED Training is included in our CPR, BLS, and ACLS classes.
Our classes are conducted in Orange Park, and Jacksonville FL
Info from Cardiac Science