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| Home > Solutions > Fire/EMS |
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FAQs | Testimonials Responding to the Alarm Firefighters are often in harm's way as they battle fires. With the intense heat, harmful smoke and fumes, heavy safety equipment and the highly physical nature of the job, every firefighter is under tremendous stress. It's not surprising, therefore, that according to the National Fire Protection Association® (NFPA), from 1980 to 2000, more than 50 percent of firefighter deaths have been attributed to sudden cardiac arrest, or SCA. SCA causes a chaotic rhythm in the heart that can cause brain damage and death in minutes. SCA, or massive heart attack, as it is sometimes known, which kills approximately 365,000 people in the U.S. alone each year, can strike anyone. Even a seemingly healthy person can suffer cardiac arrest without warning. According to the American Heart Association® (AHA), as many as 50% of SCA victims have no prior indication of heart disease — their first symptom is cardiac arrest. The only definitive treatment for SCA is a defibrillation shock — an electrical pulse through the heart — which restores a normal heart rhythm. The chance of an SCA victim's survival decreases by 10 percent for every minute that passes, in order to be effective, defibrillation treatment must be administered within the first few minutes of SCA. Equipped with AEDs, firefighters not only protect each other, but members of their community who are counting on them for help. Committed to Saving Lives Join the growing list of Fire/EMS Agencies that are deploying Cardiac Science AEDs to save lives:
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