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Cardiac arrest
Rescuer harms during resuscitation are rare
Potential harms to rescuers during cardiac arrest response and resuscitation: a scoping review
Resuscitation Plus · 2026-11 · Added 29 September 2026
A scoping review of 20 studies found harms to rescuers during cardiac arrest response are rare, with infection transmission mitigated by PPE, electrical leakage during CPR near ICDs below concern, and the main fatal risk being drowning during water rescue.
- Study type
- Systematic review
- Design
- Scoping review (PRISMA-ScR)
- Participants
- 20 studies
- Main finding
- Injuries en route were rare (<0.7%), cardioversion current leakage stayed below safe thresholds, and rescue-related drowning fatalities ranged 0.02–0.08 per 100,000 population annually
- Caveat
- Heterogeneous included studies, several based on indirect evidence from elective cardioversion
- Bottom line
- Supports current practice
Why it matters in Australia (High relevance). Rescuer safety and PPE decisions are universal to Australian crews and bystander programs, and water rescue drowning risk is a live issue for services with flood and coastal responses.
Learning goal
Strengthen my judgement on managing rescuer safety risks during cardiac arrest response and water rescue.
More
- Topic: Cardiac arrest
- Daily scan: 29 September 2026
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