Sudden death isn't always so sudden

Published: December, 2006

Chest pain, shortness of breath, and other common heart attack warning signs often precede sudden cardiac arrests.

Sudden cardiac arrest is the Hollywood picture of a heart attack: A middle-aged man clutches his chest, slumps to the floor, and expires. It's disastrously common and deadly. A whopping 20% of all deaths in the United States each year are due to a sudden cardiac arrest; barely 5% of people who have one survive.

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