PARQ COST

Sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) causes 2 million deaths each year in Europe alone. Since SCA strikes unexpectedly and is lethal within minutes if untreated, solving this problem requires recognizing individuals at risk and designing preventive strategies, providing timely and effective treatment. Because SCA mostly occurs out-of-hospital, SCA victims rely on first-response treatment provided by citizens, firefighters and emergency medical services. There are large regional differences in SCA survival rates across Europe (1-30%). This suggests that regional differences in individual risk prediction, prevention and treatment have a major impact on the chance to survive.