Sudden cardiac arrest causes more than 60% of all deaths from cardiovascular disease. In this Review, Adabag and colleagues discuss trends in the incidence of sudden cardiac death (SCD), and the risk factors and triggers of this devastating event. The authors also highlight the lack of a concise definition for SCD and suggest that prospective community surveillance programs, using multiple sources to identify cases, would enable more accurate determination of SCD burden. They also review the growing evidence for the role of public-access defibrillators in improving survival after sudden cardiac arrest.
- A. Selcuk Adabag
- Russell V. Luepker
- Bernard J. Gersh
