The brain's ability to regain consciousness without a heartbeat may be an example of the improved cerebral blood flow obtained with two novel CPR devices that were the subject of a Medical College of Wisconsin study published online this week in the Lancet. Survival rates for people who have had cardiac arrest are some of the bleakest in all of medicine, but when paramedics used the devices to assist in CPR, the odds improved by about 50%, according to the study. Not only did more people survive, they also had a much better chance of coming through with favorable brain function. The study highlights the incremental progress being made by emergency medical professionals in saving lives and preserving the brain after the heart stops beating.
