Cardiac arrest patients are kept waiting too long for
defibrillation after a heart attack, a new study shows.
The American Heart Association recommends a shock to the
heart within two minutes of cardiac arrest. The study, however, discovered that
30% of patients do not receive adequate treatment from caregivers in time.
If given the proper treatment within two minutes, the
chance of surviving a heart attack suffered in a facility is 39%. After the
two-minute window, survival rates can drop as low as 15%, the report says. The
study tracked defibrillator use in 369 hospitals from 2000 to 2005.