Cardiopulmonary resuscitation: what cost to cheat death?

To review the various outcomes from cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), the factors that influence these outcomes, the costs associated with CPR, and the application of cost-analyses to CPR.

Data used to prepare this article were drawn from published articles and work in progress.

Articles were selected for their relevance to the subjects of CPR and cost-analysis by MEDLINE keyword search.

The authors extracted all applicable data from the English literature.

Cost-analysis studies of CPR programs are limited by the high variation in resources consumed and attribution of cost to these resources. Furthermore, cost projections have not been adjusted to reflect patient-dependent variation in outcome. Variation in the patient's underlying condition, presenting cardiac rhythm, time to provision of definitive CPR, and effective perfusion all influence final outcome and, consequently, influence the cost-effectiveness of CPR programs. Based on cost data from previous studies, preliminary estimates of the cost-effectiveness of CPR programs for all 6-month survivors of a large international multicenter collaborative trial are $406,605.00 per life saved (range $344,314.00 to $966,759.00), and $225,892.00 per quality-adjusted-life-year (range $191,286.00 to $537,088.00).

Reported outcome from CPR has varied from reasonable rates of good recovery, including return to full employment to 100% mortality. Appropriate CPR is encouraged, but continued widespread application appears extremely expensive.