Fabrice Muamba

[sean_lfc]

Really is an extraordinary incident. To be shocked 15 times is very very rare, the reason been, there are only two heart rhythms that can be shocked which are ventricular fibrillation and pulseless ventricular tachycardia. In the vast majority of cases Iv seen after several shocks (4-7) the heart usually goes into a "normal-ish" rhythm like a sinus rhythm or aystole (flatlined) the most common and an un-shockable rhythm where CPR would continue to positive outcome of 4-7% hence why I said it is very very rare that you get the opportunity to shock the heart 15 times. The key in this case was quick and effective CPR which kept all the major organs like the brain perfused. But after 15 shocks the heart will not fully recover to what it was before arrest, it's what we call fried heart! But it's better to be alive with a damaged heart than be dead with one. One other thing, had this been a spectator the chances are they would have been taking to the nearest A+E and then possible transported to a specialist heart centre IF they survived the initial arrest. Fabrice was taken straight to a heart specialist centre. Normal hearts don't usually just stop in fit and healthy adults, he will have a long long recovery ahead and will possibly need open heart surgery at some stage for correction.
Like I said it's an amazing case, he is beyond lucky to be alive.

It does seem indeed a very rare case of human strength all round!

[lickedlollipop]

ynwa, fabrice muamba !!!

[kingfunk]

Although Muamba is still recovering and we don't know what'll happen next, that he stayed 78 minutes without a heartbeat or oxygen just show how far the human organism can stretch and fight and stay alive. Go humanoids!!!

He would have only being without oxygen for 3 minutes max. He would have been ventilated on the pitch and intubated on the ambulance.

[kingfunk]

It does seem indeed a very rare case of human strength all round!

Aye, good to see every now and then.

[Fivex]

You from Chester funk?

[kingfunk]

Nope!

[Fivex]

Cool

[ChesterDave]

Cool

Are you?

[Fivex]

Not really although I do have my bins collected by them.

[Gibbo]

Everyone chanting for him at the darts.

[Buzzo]

Everyone chanting for him at the darts.

A few cardiac arrests waiting to happen there

It does sound like Muamba has defied some odds in surviving though.
Just amazing.

Can you be 'dead' for 78 minutes?


By Nick Triggle Health correspondent, BBC News

The more details that emerge about Fabrice Muamba, the more amazing his story becomes.

The latest has seen the Bolton footballer labelled the "miracle man". The 23-year-old collapsed on the pitch during the FA Cup tie against Tottenham at 18:13 GMT on Saturday, but it was not until 19:31 that his heart started working again. He was - according to Bolton's club doctor - "in effect dead" during that 78 minutes.

But how is this possible?

The full details of what happened to him have yet to emerge. But the most likely explanation - and one suggested by those involved in his care - is that while his heart stopped working, it retained some form of life. The cardiac arrest he suffered meant his heart was not contracting and therefore pumping blood around his body. However, even when this happens, some electrical activity can still be taking place within the heart.

If this was the case, one of several things could have been happening. The heart could have developed a severely abnormal rhythm, known as either ventricular fibrillation - where it shakes like a jelly - or ventricular tachycardia - where it is out of control. The third explanation is that it has developed pulse-less electrical activity whereby there is an organised rhythm but no heart contractions.

In some cases, the state of the activity can interchange between the three. The important thing in such cases is to start CPR quickly. This artificially pumps the blood round the body, buying medics time to work out how to get the heart working properly. Every minute delay in starting CPR reduces the chances of survival by 10%.

In this respect, the 23-year-old was lucky. Pitch-side at White Hart Lane were a team of fully-trained and equipped medics. What is more, a cardiologist was in the crowd and was soon by Muamba's side lending help.

It meant he received almost immediate attention. But CPR alone is not enough. That only gives someone suffering a cardiac arrest a 5% chance of survival. While he lay stricken on the pitch, the footballer was given oxygen and three shocks using a defibrillator. The aim of that is to try to get the heart working again. He was soon transferred to a waiting ambulance and rushed off to hospital. In total he received another 12 shocks before his heart started working properly.

But was he really dead?

Clearly not in the technical sense - although his life was obviously in the balance. Some people flatline following a cardiac arrest, which means they do not have any activity in the heart. These cases are very hard to resuscitate people from. But, instead, with some signs of a rhythm medics kept persisting. In fact, experts say that even doing this for as long as they did for Muamba is not that unusual. Cathy Ross, of the British Heart Foundation, explains: "Performing CPR early buys the time necessary. Seventy-eight minutes is a long time, but it's not unheard of."

If you want to find out how you could help someone who has a cardiac arrest, the British Heart Foundation runs a training course called Heart Start.

Fabrice Muamba may still be in intensive care, but nonetheless not everyone is as lucky as him.

About 100,000 people a year in the UK die after having a sudden cardiac arrest.

Many of those will have collapsed in places where help is not to hand.

It is why in recent years a campaign has been under way to place more defibrillators in community settings.

Hundreds have already been placed in train stations, shopping malls and, of course, football grounds.

But there are still not enough, according to the Arrhythmia Alliance.

Truddie Lobban, the charity's founder, says: "The problem is that it is still very patchy. There are more than there used to be, but I would like to see them as common as fire extinguishers.

"We need them in schools, outside churches and on every high street.

"You don't have to be an expert to use them. They are automated and explain to the user how they work.

"They can make the difference between life and death."

'ere

[Chazza]

James Pearce @Pearcesport
Latest on Muamba: Hospital say he's been able to sit out of bed for a short time and has begun to eat and watch tv. Still in intensive care

[Dalglish]

Meanwhile over at Red Issue...

[Gray]

Classy

[dom9]

Private Eye they are not.