Cardiopulmonary resuscitation in a hospitalized population: prospective study of factors associated with outcome

A prospective study of advanced cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) was carried out on 226 patients in order to examine factors predicting successful resuscitation and 6 month survival. The mean age of all patients was 70 years and median age was 74. Cardiopulmonary resuscitation was successful in 40.5% (137) of all arrests and in 48.7% (110) of the first arrests. Thirty of 207 patients with one or more cardiac arrests were discharged alive (14%). Twenty-one of our patients were alive at 6 months (10.3%). Patients in ventricular fibrillation and/or ventricular tachycardia at the time of arrest were more likely to have successful outcomes. When the patient required Isuprel or bicarbonate, cardiopulmonary resuscitation was significantly less successful. We found no correlation of immediate outcome with the following variables: location of arrest; time of day; pre-existence of shock; coma; stroke; malignancy. Uremia and/or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease was not significantly associated with failed resuscitation. Most notable in our results of specific treatments was the evidence for the need to improve the initial pH, particularly when it was less than 7.2. Failure to do so by the time the second blood gas was drawn was associated with failure of cardiopulmonary resuscitation. Our results also suggest that the adequate treatment of metabolic acidosis, and improved ventilatory management with improved PO2 and optimization of PCO2, play a role in the better outcome of cardiopulmonary resuscitation.