Incidence and Outcomes of In-Hospital Cardiac Arrests in Children Undergoing Cardiac Surgery: An Opportunity to Learn More from Success

Abstract

In this issue of Heart, Lung and Circulation, Dagan et al. report the trends in incidence and outcomes of in-hospital cardiac arrest (IHCA) in children undergoing cardiac surgery at a single specialist paediatric cardiac surgical centre [ [1] Dagan M. Butt W. Millar J. d’Udekem Y. Thompson J. Namachivayam S.P. Changing risk of in-hospital cardiac arrest in children following cardiac surgery in Victoria, Australia, 2007-2016. Heart Lung Circ. 2019; 28: 1904-1912 Google Scholar ]. The main findings of this retrospective observational study are the dramatic decrease in cardiac arrest rate, which was seen mainly in low to moderate risk category surgeries, and the decreased overall hospital mortality for children suffering IHCA between January 2007 and December 2016. The observed fall in mortality post-IHCA mirrors an overall fall in hospital mortality in cardiac surgery patients. Changing Risk of In-Hospital Cardiac Arrest in Children Following Cardiac Surgery in Victoria, Australia, 2007–2016Heart, Lung and CirculationVol. 28Issue 12PreviewReported incidence of in hospital cardiac arrest (IHCA) after paediatric cardiac surgery varies between 3–4% in high income countries and this risk may have changed over time. We sought to examine this trend in detail. Full-Text PDF