Helps Save 52-Year-Old Financial Analyst Stricken While Mowing Lawn
ZOLL Medical Corporation (Nasdaq GS: ZOLL), a manufacturer of
resuscitation devices and related software solutions, announced today
that in the short span of eight months since the Chula Vista, California
Fire Department (CVFD) installed the ZOLL AutoPulse® Non-Invasive
Cardiac Support Pump, the department has experienced a 46.7 percent
increase in survival rates from sudden cardiac arrest (SCA). Prior to
installing the devices on its first responder equipment, the department
was recording only an 8 percent SCA survival rate.
According to Battalion Chief John Davidson, who heads EMS operations,
the AutoPulse has been used about 65 times since it went into service
last August. Most recently on March 29, it helped save the life of
52-year-old financial analyst David Krogh, who was stricken with SCA
while mowing the lawn. A physician’s assistant driving by stopped and
began CPR. She continued basic life support until the fire department
arrived about three minutes later with the AutoPulse, which administered
uninterrupted, automatic chest compressions for two minutes. Krogh was
then successfully defibrillated and transported to the hospital.
“I’ve been a paramedic for 26 years and have never seen the number of
saves we’ve had since using the AutoPulse,” said Davidson. “With Mr.
Krogh, it was one of the quickest codes I’ve witnessed in terms of how
quickly we were able to get his pulse and respiration back.”
“It is difficult for a human provider to replicate the kind of perfusion
CVFD has been seeing with the AutoPulse, especially for prolonged
periods of time,” Davidson commented. “We’ve observed people who have
been down 20 minutes and appear cold and cyanotic, and soon become pink
and warm after using the device. AutoPulse is safer for our rescuers
since they aren’t standing up in the back of an ambulance doing
ineffective CPR. We’ve also eliminated most of the interruptions
typically encountered in CPR cases, including during transfers, and
going down narrow hallways, stairs, or elevators.”
Krogh, who now has an implantable cardioverter defibrillator, says he
didn’t remember anything when he woke up in the hospital two days later,
which is typical of someone who suffers SCA. Neither he nor his family
has a history of cardiac arrest. Medical professionals have been unable
to determine why he was stricken with this most often fatal heart
failure.
As soon as he was well enough, Krogh went back to thank his rescuers at
CVFD.
