Without heartbeat Young patient survives without pulse for over 40 minutes

Brought back to life: man was 40 minutes without a pulse
Hard to believe: In the US, a man has survived 40 minutes without a pulse. The 36-year-old had suffered a cardiac arrest, but then had luck in misfortune: Two policemen started soon after the standstill with resuscitation measures and took almost three quarters of an hour with the heart-lung massage.

More than 40 minutes without a pulse
In Germany, around 75,000 people are reanimated every year after a cardiac arrest, but only about 5,000 of them survive. In some cases, this is because the help comes too late. Cardiac arrest counts every minute. This has also experienced a US American first-hand. The man had no pulse for over 40 minutes and survived thanks to first aid from two policemen.

A heart-lung massage can save lives. An American who has had no heart rate for 40 minutes after a cardiac arrest has also experienced this. He is still alive thanks to First Aid. (Image: Gina Sanders / fotolia.com)

Cardiac arrest while working
When cardiac arrest is usually thought of the elderly, but also young people are affected.

So also the 36-year-old John Ogburn from the US state of North Carolina. The man had suffered a cardiac arrest while working on a laptop in a restaurant, according to a BBC report.

His heart had not beat for nearly three-quarters of an hour, yet he survived - thanks to two policemen who happened to be around.

Serious damage without quick help
Although lay people are often afraid to carry out a revival, because they fear to do something wrong. But the only mistake they can make is not doing anything, my experts say.

Cardiac massage is the only way to provide oxygen to the heart and organs. Lack of oxygen every second threatens further damage to the brain.

Policemen should be familiar with first aid. This circumstance saved John Ogburn's life. According to the BBC, two officers had started resuscitation just seconds after the emergency call.

Lawrence Guiler and Niko Bajic took 42 minutes to complete the cardiopulmonary massage - until Ogburn's heart rate returned.

Two policemen and an unknown helper
Their commitment is all the more commendable, as emergency services, according to the "BBC", only have to carry out resuscitation measures for up to 20 minutes.

The thanks are obviously due to another person. According to a report in the Charlotte Observer newspaper, the resuscitation helped a woman in the restaurant.

According to the police, she identified herself as a nurse who wanted to help, "and she certainly did," says Guiler. "She did not do chest compressions, but she helped me try to monitor his pulse to see if he starts again."

According to Bajic, they do not know the name of the woman.

The family also thanked. "I had goose bumps everywhere when I saw him and his wife and how happy they are, and we met his parents and they could not stop thanking us for saving their son's life," Bajic said, according to a report British "Daily Mail".

It was very emotional when they realized that they actually did this: "The whole life of these people was influenced by what we did."

Make the most of the second chance in life
After the first aid, the patient was taken to the hospital, where he was put into an artificial coma for the rest of the week to recover.

Among other things, he was advised not to drive for six months, but overall he feels fine, Ogburn told the BBC, aside from the pain in the chest.

"My energy level is not what it was before, but that could be because my routine has changed a bit," the 36-year-old said.

The combination chest compression and internal defibrillator is a bit painful, "but if that's all I can complain about, then I'm fine," said Ogburn.

He explained that he is still trying to figure out how to make the most of his second chance in life.

He felt obliged to save his life, especially because they did more than duty required. "I'm so thankful for what they did."

Double or triple the chances of survival
Michael Kurz, a professor at the University of Alabama School of Medicine, said in the "BBC" report:

"We have evidence that every minute that a person's heart beats and no proper heart-lung massage is performed, the chance of survival is reduced by ten percent."

According to the expert, the 20-minute regulation for paramedics should be reconsidered. "An immediate heart-lung massage can double or triple the chances of survival in a cardiac arrest," Kurz said.

"Most workers in the US are not prepared to handle heart emergencies, and that needs to change." (Ad)