However, according to the National Center for Early Defibrillation, ⁶ some conditions can put people at greater risk for SCA. These conditions include:

Age greater than 40 (men)

Post-menopausal status (women)

Inactive lifestyle

High blood pressure

High cholesterol

Diabetes

History of heart disease (either personal or in the family)

Unfortunately, SCA can affect children as well as adults. Some causes of pediatric SCA include SIDS, trauma or accident (e.g., electrocution, drowning, overdose/ poisoning), illness, and congenital heart disease. ² A hard blow to the chest (such as with a baseball) can also trigger cardiac arrest.

Until recently, children were not considered candidates for defibrillation. Clinicians were unsure whether an AED could accurately diagnose cardiac arrest in children, and the AED units delivered shocks at energy levels considered too high for small for children.

Over time, the need for pediatric defibrillation became increasingly apparent. For instance, the American Heart Association observed that "...although VF is not a common arrhythmia in children, it is observed in as many as 15% of pediatric and adolescent arrests. ³ And a recent study of the Houston EMS system calculated that in the United States, about 16,000 children under age 17 die annually due to unexpected pediatric cardiopulmonary arrest. ⁴ Current studies estimate ventricular fibrillation (VF) in 6%-19% of pediatric cardiac arrest cases. ⁵

Today, there is one AED that can be used on small children and infants. This AED can accurately analyze pediatric heart rhythms, and use pediatric defibrillation pads that deliver a shock reduced to pediatric levels, making the therapy appropriate for infants and small children in cardiac arrest.