Cardiac arrest is a
serious medical condition when the heart stops beating suddenly. It is not
impossible if this condition can result because the heart is no longer
functioning.
The brain is usually the
last "dead" organ when someone is said to be lifeless.
However, how long does it
take for the brain to actually die after the heart stops pumping blood
throughout the body?
What are the causes of cardiac arrest?
There are a number of
factors that can cause the heart to stop suddenly. But generally, ventricular
fibrillation and atrial fibrillation are the start of cardiac arrest.
The heart has four main chambers
(chambers), with details of two chambers located below (ventricles) and two
spaces above (atrium).
The sudden appearance of
electrical force disorders in the heart muscle will automatically make all the
heart chambers move out of control. Or in other words, the rhythm and heartbeat
changes suddenly (arrhythmia).
Then automatically, the
heart cannot carry out its duties optimally to pump blood throughout the body.
Cardiac arrest can be at
risk of being fatal because the vital organs in the body are unable to obtain
adequate amounts of blood.
In addition, someone who
had previously suffered damage to the heart, forced to do vigorous exercise,
lose a lot of blood, until hypothermia, can also cause the heartbeat to stop.
The brain dies in minutes after the heart stops
Medically, you generally
lose consciousness in 20 seconds after the blood stops flowing in the body,
quoted from Very Well Health.
It should be underlined
that "unconsciousness" here does not mean that your brain stops
functioning.
Your brain is still
functioning even if you are unconscious, but just not capable enough to keep
your body awake. You are even expected to still be able to survive in a
semi-conscious condition even though the pulmonary and cardiac function has
stopped.
Over 20 seconds, the
cerebral cortex (the part of the brain that functions as a place of logical
thinking) will begin to weaken gradually. Furthermore, the supply of the
remaining oxygen to the new brain will begin to run out within two minutes.
Approximately 3-4 minutes
after the heart stops, the brain no longer gets the blood supply at all
resulting in cell damage and organ death. This is the reason why most cases of
cardiac arrest often lead to death.
What should be done when the heart stops suddenly?
Before it is really late
and fatal, there is still an opportunity to deal with cardiac arrest.
You do this by doing
Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) aka cardiac resuscitation as soon as
possible.
The faster CPR is given,
the greater the likelihood that the person will be saved. Because the heart
stops, the brain is not just running out of blood and oxygen.
A lot of blood will also
be trapped in the brain until it is difficult to get out. As a result, there is
a buildup of acid, free radicals, and other chemicals that harm the brain.
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