Sudden cardiac death historical perspective

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Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1] Associate Editor(s)-in-Chief: Sara Zand, M.D.[2] Edzel Lorraine Co, DMD, MD[3]

Overview

Sudden cardiac death (SCD) occurs abruptly and unexpectedly in a person who is not known to have cardiac disease. It usually happens within one hour of onset of symptoms. About twenty-five percent of human deaths can be attributed to SCD, with the most common mechanism being the ventricular fibrillation (VF). This concept was first proposed by MacWilliam more than 120 years ago, during the time when the electrocardiogram was not yet invented.

The concept of evolutions on how the relationship of SCD and VF was established, the development of defibrillators was achieved, and cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) methods were practiced, can provide a better description of how SCD evolved through time.

Relation of Sudden Cardiac Death and Ventricular Fibrillation

• The importance of VF became clear after decades of exploring the scientific explanation for sudden cardiac death.
• Below is a table that summarizes the historical events on how sudden cardiac death became clear.

Table 1.Personalities With Significant Historical Contribution to the Discovery of Sudden Cardiac Death.

Name	Image	Description
MacWilliam	(Image courtesy of )|link=Special:FilePath/.jpg]]	He proposed the concept of ventricular fibrillation (VF is the cause of SCD in man more than 120 years ago.
Hippocrates	(Image courtesy of )|]]	.
Lyman Brewer	(Image courtesy of Wikipedia)|link=Special:FilePath/.jpg]]	. .
Vesalius		.
John Erichsen	(Image courtesy of Wikipedia)|link=Special:FilePath/.jpg]]	.
Carl Ludwig and M Hoffa	(Image courtesy of Wikipedia)|link=Special:FilePath/.jpg]]
Ziemssen	(Image courtesy of Wikipedia)|link=Special:FilePath/.jpg]]

Development of Defibrillators

Table 2. The development of defibrillation therapy for sudden cardiac death.

Name	Image	Description
Jean Luis Prevost and Frederic Battelli	(Image courtesy of )|link=Special:FilePath/.jpg]]
William Kouwenhoven and Guy Knickerbocker	(Image courtesy of )|]]	.
Albert Hyman and C. Henry Hyman	(Image courtesy of Wikipedia)|link=Special:FilePath/.jpg]]	. .
Claude Beck		.
Eskin and Klimov	(Image courtesy of Wikipedia)|link=Special:FilePath/.jpg]]	.
Bernard Lown and Barouh Berkovits	(Image courtesy of Wikipedia)|link=Special:FilePath/.jpg]]
McNeilly and Pemberton	(Image courtesy of Wikipedia)|link=Special:FilePath/.jpg]]
Stephen Heilman and Michel Mirowski	(Image courtesy of Wikipedia)|link=Special:FilePath/.jpg]]
Morton Mower	(Image courtesy of Wikipedia)|link=Special:FilePath/.jpg]]
John Schuder	(Image courtesy of Wikipedia)|link=Special:FilePath/.jpg]]