Use of implantable cardioverter defibrillators in Canadian and US survivors of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Cardiac arrest due to ventricular arrhythmia in the absence of a reversible cause or contraindication has been a class I indication for insertion of an implantable cardioverter defibrillator since 1998. We compared and contrasted the use of implantable cardioverter defibrillator therapy in Canada and the United States among adults who survived a cardiac arrest.

Method

Data on hospital separations from April 1, 1994 through March 31, 2003 were obtained from the Health Person-Oriented Information Database maintained by Statistics Canada and from the US National Hospital Discharge Survey on all patients with a primary diagnosis of cardiac arrest, ventricular fibrillation or ventricular flutter for the same 9-year period. We excluded all records of patients with a sec

SUBMITTER: Birnie DH 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC1896034 | biostudies-literature | 2007 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature