Medtronic Attorneys, Williams Kherkher

Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation

Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) is an emergency medical procedure designed to assist a victim of cardiac or respiratory arrest. It is performed by professionals or by trained bystanders in the community.

For past 50 years, CPR has been a combination of artificial blood circulation and respiration. However, in March of 2008, the American Heart Association and the European Resuscitation Council endorsed the effectiveness of chest compressions alone without resuscitation for adults.

The Role of CPR

CPR will generally not restart the heart. Its purpose is to maintain the flow of oxygenated blood to the brain and heart so that tissue death is delayed. Therefore, there is an opportunity for successful resuscitation without permanent brain damage. Defibrillation and advance life support are designed to restart the heart.

The brain will start to sustain damage if blood flow has been stopped for 4 minutes, and the damage comes irreversible after seven minutes. In 1 to 2 hours, the cells of the body will die without blood flow. For the above reasons, CPR is only effective if performed within the first 7 minutes after the stoppage of blood flow. Fortunately, the low temperature the body sometimes reaches, such as in the cases of drowning victims, actually prolongs the brain’s survival.

If the patient still has a pulse, they are undergoing respiratory arrest, not cardiac arrest. Therefore, artificial respiration is appropriate. However, some people have difficulty detecting a pulse, so it is possible to use CPR in both cases.

If you or a loved one has suffered cardiac arrest due a faulty Medtronic defibrillator featuring Sprint Fidelis leads, contact the medtronic lawsuit lawyers of Williams Kherkher at 800-761-3187 to discuss your case and to determine your legal options.