Neuroprognostication after Cardiac Arrest

Survival of patients with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) is still very low. After the return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC), survivors are admitted to the intensive care unit. They can be conscious or comatose. Conscious survivors of cardiac arrest generally have a good prognosis. In comatose patients, prognosis is better in patients with shockable rhythm (ventricular tachycradia or ventricular fibrillation) as the initial rhythm at the arrival of Emergency medical team. In comatose patients we try to predict the neurological outcome with everyday clinical examination, a neuron specific enolase (NSE), comuter tomography (CT) scan or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the brain, electroencephalogram (EEG) and somoatosensoric evoked potentials (SSEP). Neurological outcome is presented according to Glasgow-Pittsburgh Cerebral Performance Category Scale. Certain proportion of comatose patients may regain consciousness even after their discharge from the intensive care unit (ICU). Keywords: Out-of-hospital cardiac arrest; Comatose survivors; Postresuscitation brain damage; Neuroprognostication