Understanding CPR Success Rates: Effectiveness and Influencing Factors

Cardiac arrest claims more lives than cancer, influenza, pneumonia, road accidents, HIV, firearms, and house fires combined worldwide. Unfortunately, approximately 90 percent of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest victims die. CPR administered immediately after cardiac arrest increases the person’s chance of survival. But how effective does CPR is? Let’s look at the CPR success rate through some facts and statistics in this article.

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Why is CPR Important?

Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) is a crucial lifesaving procedure for someone whose heart has stopped or is no longer breathing. Within the first 4 minutes of the arrest, brain damage is not likely, and there’s still a chance of survival. Brain damage could occur within 4-6 minutes, reaching the beginning of brain death. Brain damage is likely within 6-10 minutes, and the person suffers ongoing issues after being resuscitated. Brain death is expected to occur after 10 minutes of the arrest, and there’s a slim chance of surviving.

Despite this, around 70% of Americans are still hesitant to perform CPR because they have no training or their knowledge has lapsed. Therefore, CPR recertification should be updated every year or two. Because of this, despite its importance, people doubt they perform a successful resuscitation.

Cases of Cardiac Arrest in the United States

There are more than 356,000 out-of-hospital cardiac arrests annually in the United States. According to the Heart and Stroke Statistics report from the American Heart Association, cardiac arrest remains a public health crisis. Unfortunately, almost 90% of these cases are fatal. Many die in this situation because only 46% of victims get CPR from bystanders. And in instances where CPR was performed, it has come after the heart had been stopped for several minutes. So the sooner you take action, the better the outcomes for a person suffering an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest.

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Is CPR Effective?

Performing Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation doubles or even triple the chances of survival when performed early enough after cardiac arrest. However, the success of CPR is vastly overrated by patients. The researchers said that the general public considers CPR more effective than it is, and they tend to ignore the negative effect it has.

In earlier studies, cardiac arrest patients had pegged CPR survival rates between 19% and 75%. But the actual chain of survival rate is about 12% for cardiac arrests that occur outside hospitals and between 24% and 40% for those that happen in the hospital, according to the report published online in the Emergency Medicine Journal.

How often is CPR successful in reviving someone in cardiac arrest?

The success rate of CPR in reviving someone in cardiac arrest vary depending on a number of factors, such as the person's age, overall health, and how quickly CPR is initiated. According to the American Heart Association (AHA), the overall survival rate for out-of-hospital cardiac arrest is around 10%. However, survival rates are improved if bystander CPR is started immediately.

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What percentage of people survive after receiving CPR?

According to the American Heart Association (AHA), the overall survival rate for out-of-hospital cardiac arrest is around 10%. However, survival rates can be improved if bystander CPR is started immediately. Studies have shown that bystander CPR increases the chances of survival for someone experiencing cardiac arrest. In fact, the AHA reports that survival rates increases to 40% or higher when bystander CPR is performed promptly.

How long should CPR be performed before it is deemed unsuccessful?

The duration of CPR that should be performed before it is deemed unsuccessful varies depending on the situation. According to the American Heart Association (AHA), CPR should be performed continuously until emergency medical services (EMS) arrive or until an automated external defibrillator (AED) becomes available. If the person does not respond to CPR within a reasonable amount of time, EMS declares the person dead on the scene.

What is the average survival rate for individuals who receive CPR outside of a hospital setting?

The average survival rate for individuals who receive CPR outside of a hospital setting varies depending on a number of factors. According to the AHA, the overall survival rate for out-of-hospital cardiac arrest is around 10%. However, survival rates is improved if bystander CPR is started immediately. Studies have shown that bystander CPR doubles or triple the chances of survival for someone experiencing cardiac arrest. 

Is the success rate of CPR higher when performed by a trained professional as opposed to a bystander?

The success rate of CPR is generally higher when performed by a trained professional, such as a paramedic or emergency medical technician (EMT), as opposed to a bystander. However, bystander CPR is still critical to improving survival rates for people experiencing cardiac arrest. According to the AHA, the most important factor in the success of CPR is how quickly it is initiated.

What Are the 3 Factors That Impact the Rate of Survival?

For heart attack and cardiac arrest victims outside of a hospital, several factors increase their chances of making it to the hospital and recovering from being safely discharged. These factors include having the event witnessed by someone and receiving CPR as soon as possible.

1. Bystander CPR and EMS CPR:

Emergency medical responders are trained to perform Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation at a rate of 30:2 compressions to ventilation ratio. Each chest compression manually pumps blood to the brain and other vital organs. The recommended chest compression rate is 100-120 compressions per minute. Even partially restoring blood flow increases the chances of survival.

Compared to CPR done by a healthcare provider, bystander CPR has lower rates of survival, but it improves the chances of survival. That’s why the American Heart Association encourages everyone to learn hands-only CPR or compression-only CPR (performing uninterrupted chest compressions without rescue breathing). Research has also found that high-quality CPR training and initiating CPR as soon as possible after the arrest significantly improve long-term survival outcomes.