A 5 year audit of cardiac arrests at Riyadh Armed Forces Hospital

There were 347 cardiac arrests analysed over a 5 year period. 180 patients were successfully resuscitated and 61 eventually left hospital. Patients with thromboembolic disease, renal failure, stroke, neoplasia, head injury and septicemia did badly. No patient with liver failure who arrested left hospital. The need for intubation at the arrest was associated with an increased mortality. Patients who developed ventricular fibrillation or tachycardia were more likely to survive than patients who developed asystole. Our discharge outcome of 18% compares favourably with all previous studies.