The delay in response time cuts the patient's chances of survival in half, according to the American Heart Association, specifically if the response does not come within the two-minute window. Going beyond two minutes further decreases the patient's chances of recovery.
"Until now, the recommendation for defibrillation within two minutes was based on expert opinion," explained Dr. Paul S. Chan, the study's leader. "There were not clear standards established. This study helps support the two-minutes recommendation."
He furthered, "The longer the delay, the less likely it is you'll survive," as quoted by USA Today.
The study discovered that delayed response time to the arrests were mostly seen in hospitals with less than 250 beds. The incidents of delay were determined to occur mostly during after-hours and on weekends. It was also shown in the treatment of black patients.
According to Forbes, the doctors, upon studying more than 6,800 cases of cardiac arrests, saw that defibrillation was given after two minutes or more in 2,045 of the cases. Of that group, only 22 percent survived.
"If we had the ability to look at all the hospitals in the country, the numbers probably would be worse," said Chan, who was referring to the response time, as well as the survival rate. "These are the better-performing hospitals, ones that issues quarterly reports."
Dr. Chan recommended having the availability of defibrillators to more units, as well as emergency teams for cardiac arrest cases.
The results of the study are to be published in the January 3 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.
