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Epidemiology of sudden cardiac death

Epidemiologie des plötzlichen Herztodes

  • Chapter
Die Notfalltherapie bei akutem Kreislaufstillstand

  • 39 Accesses

Summary

Sudden cardiac death continues to be responsible for about half of all cardiac deaths in industrialized countries. In the USA, about 225 000 sudden cardiac deaths occur per year. In Germany 1995/97, the rate of sudden cardiac deaths within 24 hours after onset of acute symptoms according to the data of the WHO MONICA/KORA Augsburg Coronary Event Register is 209 per 100 000 for men and 80 per 100 000 for women in the age group of 25-74 years. There exist several definitions of sudden cardiac death, ranging from a few minutes to 24 hours between the onset of symptoms and death. Acute ventricular arrhythmia appears to be the direct cause of death in the majority of cases, frequently due to an underlying coronary heart disease. Similar to myocardial infarction, a circadian, weekly, and seasonal variation in the incidence of sudden cardiac death was observed. Triggers of sudden cardiac death include physical activity, emotional stress, and threats from outside such as earthquakes or wars. Successful preventive measures combine adequate pharmacological interventions, electronic devices, and behavior modification in order to protect patients at risk during vulnerable periods as well as to prevent and treat the underlying disease.

Zusammenfassung

Der plötzliche Herztod ist weiterhin für etwa die Hälfte aller kardialen Todesfälle in den westlichen Industrienationen verantwortlich. In den USA ereignen sich ca. 225 000 Fälle von plötzlichem Herztod pro Jahr. In Deutschland ergaben die Daten des MONICA/ KORA-Augsburg-Herzinfarktregisters 1995/97 eine Rate an plötzlichen Herztodfällen (<24 Stunden nach Symptombeginn) im Alter von 25-74 Jahren von 209 pro 100 000 bei Männern und von 80 pro 100 000 bei Frauen. Der plötzliche Herztod wird unterschiedlich definiert, mit Zeitintervallen von Einsetzen der Symptome bis zum Tod von wenigen Minuten bis zu 24 Stunden. Ätiologisch scheinen akute ventrikuläre Rhythmusstörungen für einen großen Teil der Fälle von plötzlichem Herztod direkt verantwortlich zu sein, häufig auf dem Boden einer koronaren Herzerkrankung. Analog zum Herzinfarkt wurde eine zirkadiane, wöchentliche und jahreszeitliche Variation im Auftreten des plötzlichen Herztodes beobachtet. Auslösende Faktoren schließen akute körperliche Anstrengung, emotionale Belastung und Bedrohungen von außen, z. B. durch Erdbeben oder Kriege, ein. Eine erfolgreiche Prävention umfasst sowohl medizinische Maßnahmen als auch eine adäquate Verhaltensprävention, um zum einen während Phasen besonderer Gefährdung Hochrisikopatienten Schutz zu bieten, und zum anderen, um längerfristig die Entstehung bzw. die Progre-dienz von prädisponierenden Grunderkrankungen zu verhindern.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institut für Arbeits-, Sozialmedizin und Epidemiologie, Universitätsklinikum Charité, 10098, Berlin, Germany

    Dr. med. J. Müller-Nordhorn & Prof. Dr. S. N. Willich

  2. Klinikum Benjamin Franklin, Med. Klinik II, Hindenburgdamm 30, 12200, Berlin, Germany

    Priv.-Doz. Dr. med. H.-R. Arntz

  3. GSF Forschungszentrum, Institut für Epidemiologie, Ingolstädter Landstr. 1, 85758, Neuherberg, Germany

    Dr. med. H. Löwel

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  1. Dr. med. J. Müller-Nordhorn
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  2. Prof. Dr. S. N. Willich
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  3. Priv.-Doz. Dr. med. H.-R. Arntz
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  1. Klinikum Benjamin Franklin, Medizinische Klinik II, Hindenburgdamm 30, 12200, Berlin, Germany

    H.-R. Arntz

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Müller-Nordhorn, J., Willich, S.N., Arntz, HR., Löwel, H. (2002). Epidemiology of sudden cardiac death. In: Arntz, HR. (eds) Die Notfalltherapie bei akutem Kreislaufstillstand. Steinkopff, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-57511-2_2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-57511-2_2

  • Publisher Name: Steinkopff, Heidelberg

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-7985-1356-3

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