Why people who live above the 16th floor in high-rises can NEVER survive cardiac arrest

PEOPLE are less likely to survive CARDIAC ARREST if they live on particular floor in a block of flats, reveals a shocking study.

 

Particularly those living on floor three or higher have a reduced risk of survival

 

It might give you a better view, but living in a high-rise building could prove fatal. Research out today suggests people are more likely to survive cardiac arrest if they live on the first couple of floors of a building.

In particular, those who have a flat on the third floor or higher are less likely to survive. Worryingly, survival was negligible for residents living above the 16th floor. 

Ian Drennan, a paramedic with York Region Paramedic Services and a researcher said: ”As the number of high-rise buildings continues to increase and as population density rises in major urban centres, it is important to determine the effect of delays to patient care in high-rise buildings on survival after cardiac arrest.”

 

Particularly those living on floor three or higher have a reduced risk of survival

 

The team looked at 8216 people who suffered cardiac arrest and had been treated by first responders. Of the 5998 living below the third floor, 4.2 per cent survived the arrest. Only 2.6 of the 1884 people living above the third floor survived.

The researchers found a survival rate of a mere 0.9 per cent for those living above the 16th floor and, shockingly, no survivors for those living above the 25th floor.

It seems the best chance of survival lies with those who have private homes, as 3.8 per cent survived to be discharged from hospital. 

The researchers highlight the use of automated external defibrillators (AED) was very low in the study.

 

Those living above the 25th floor had minimal chance of surviving

 

The research team - from Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute, St. Michael's Hospital, Toronto - advise there are several solutions to boost survival rates.

They first suggest as giving paramedics and first responders sole access to elevators for emergency service without public interference - similar to the access of firefighters in the event of a fire.

On top of this, they recommend emergency alerts to building staff before arrival of the paramedics and better placement of defibrillators to increase bystander use.

Other health experts recommend solutions such as including CPR/AED training for residents in blocks of flats, a national online registry of public-access defibrillators linked to first-responder applications and using smartphones to activate volunteer first responders for patients with cardiac arrest.

  

The researchers made suggestions for possible solutions to this problem

 

Associate Professor Marcus Eng Hock Ong, Department of Emergency Medicine, Singapore General Hospital said: "Singapore has a multi-pronged approach to address high-rise residential out-of-hospital cardiac arrests.”

According to the British Heart Foundation (BHF), cardiac arrest occurs when the heart suddenly stops pumping blood around the body. 

Someone who is having a cardiac arrest will suddenly lose consciousness and will stop breathing or stop breathing normally - unless immediately treated by CPR this always leads to death within minutes. 

Immediate CPR can be used to keep oxygen circulating around the body until a defibrillator can be used and/or until the ambulance arrives.