At the end of this module, you will be able to:
- Explain what a heart attack is
- List some symptoms of a heart attack
- Explain how to provide first aid for a person suffering a heart attack
- Explain what cardiac arrest is
- List some symptoms of a person in cardiac arrest
- Explain how to provide first aid for a person in cardiac arrest
The following key questions are answered in this module:
What is a heart attack?
A heart attack is caused when blood is blocked from flowing in a blood vessel to the heart. If oxygen-enriched blood cannot flow to the heart, it can be damaged.
What is cardiac arrest?
Cardiac arrest occurs when a heart's electrical system malfunctions and causes the heart to beat irregularly. The person loses heart function, breathing, and consciousness suddenly without warning.
Can a heart attack lead to cardiac arrest?
Yes. A heart attack can lead to cardiac arrest.
What should a person do if someone is suffering from a heart attack or cardiac arrest?
It's important to very quickly do two things: summon medical assistance and provide first aid until medical care arrives.
Below is a transcript of the video sample provided for this module:
A cardiac emergency is a health emergency related to the heart. Heart attack and cardiac arrest are both cardiac emergencies which are life threatening situations that require immediately calling for emergency medical assistance. Because these are life threatening emergencies, it pays to know what to do in advance. In this course, you'll learn what a heart attack and cardiac arrest is, the differences between them, as well as the first aid to provide if someone is having a cardiac emergency.
Use the additional resources and links below to learn more about this topic:
- American Heart Association – www.heart.org/heartorg/
- Conditions: How they are different - http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/Conditions/More/MyHeartandStrokeNews/Heart-Attack-or-Sudden-Cardiac-Arrest-How-Are-They-Different_UCM_440804_Article.jsp#.V7dtWHnmq70
- Conditions Heart Attack - http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/Conditions/HeartAttack/Heart-Attack_UCM_001092_SubHomePage.jsp
- Conditions Cardiac Arrest - http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/Conditions/More/CardiacArrest/Cardiac-Arrest_UCM_002081_SubHomePage.jsp
- US National Library of Medicine (NIH) - https://medlineplus.gov
- Health Topics Heart Attack - https://medlineplus.gov/heartattack.html
- Health Topics Cardiac Arrest - https://medlineplus.gov/cardiacarrest.html