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Asystole (New Latin, from Greek privative a "not, without" + systolē "contraction" [1] [2]) is the absence of ventricular contractions in the context of a lethal heart arrhythmia (in contrast to an induced asystole on a cooled patient on a heart-lung machine and general anesthesia during surgery necessitating stopping the heart).
Cardiac arrest is diagnosed by the inability to find a pulse in an unresponsive patient. [4] [1] The goal of treatment for cardiac arrest is to rapidly achieve return of spontaneous circulation using a variety of interventions including CPR, defibrillation, and/or cardiac pacing.
Initial symptoms may include heart asystole and respiratory arrest. [1] While the asystole may spontaneously resolve fairly rapidly, the respiratory arrest is typically more prolonged. [1] Other symptoms may include burns and blunt injuries. [1] Of those who survive, about 75% have ongoing health problems as a result, such as cataracts and ...
Bradycardia may be associated with symptoms of fatigue, dyspnea, dizziness, confusion, and frank syncope due to reduced forward blood flow to the brain, lungs, and skeletal muscle. [6] The types of symptoms often depend on the etiology of the slow heart rate, classified by the anatomic location of a dysfunction within the cardiac conduction ...
Unfortunately, many persons experiencing symptoms (for example, angina) that may lead to a cardiac arrest ignore these warning symptoms or, recognizing these warning symptoms correctly, fail to activate the EMS system, preferring to contact relatives instead (e.g., the elderly often contact their adult offspring rather than contact emergency ...
Yet there are cases of patients regaining consciousness during CPR while still in full cardiac arrest. [26] In absence of cerebral function monitoring or frank return to consciousness, the neurological status of patients undergoing CPR is intrinsically uncertain. It is somewhere between the state of clinical death and a normal functioning state.
When symptoms are present these may include palpitations or feeling a pause between heartbeats. More seriously there may be lightheadedness, passing out, shortness of breath, or chest pain. [4] While most types of arrhythmia are not serious, some predispose a person to complications such as stroke or heart failure. Others may result in cardiac ...
Transcutaneous pacing is no longer indicated for the treatment of asystole (cardiac arrest associated with a "flat line" on the ECG), with the possible exception of witnessed asystole (as in the case of bifascicular block that progresses to complete heart block without an escape rhythm). [4]