Long-term prognosis after out-of-hospital cardiac arrest

In this study we aimed to report survival beyond 6 months, including quality of life, for patients after out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) with a physician-based EMS in an urban area.

We collected data related to OHCA prospectively during a 2-year period. Long-term survival was determined by cross-referencing our database with two Danish national registries. Patients older than 18 years who had survived for more than 6 months after OHCA were contacted, and after informed written consent was obtained, an interview was conducted in their home and a questionnaire on quality of life (SF-36) and the mini mental state examination (MMSE) were administered.

We had data on 984 cases of OHCA. In 512 cases CPR was attempted and at 6 months, a total of 63 patients were alive corresponding to 12.3% [95% CI: 9.7-15.5%] of all who were treated. Of the 33 patients examined, the median MMSE was 29 (16-30) and two patients, corresponding to 6%, [95% CI: 0.7-20.6%] had an MMSE below 24. Two out of eight aspects of the SF-36 were significantly worse than national norms at the same age, but none of the summary scores differed significantly.

Survival beyond 6 months was found in 12.3% OHCA in a physician-based EMS. Summary scores of quality of life were not significantly different from the national norm but 2 out of 8 subscores were lower. Signs of dementia were uncommon as only 6% had an MMSE score below 24.