Public Notification:
Researchers at the Medical College of Wisconsin are studying the best way to treat adults in cardiac arrest, which is when a person’s heart stops beating. The study will compare two standard treatments to find out which treatment will help more people live after cardiac arrest. The study will begin February, 2018 in Milwaukee County.
Adults with a known blockage in the artery of their heart quickly have a heart procedure (cardiac catheterization) to remove the blockage and restore blood flow to their heart after cardiac arrest. There is no good test to decide who is having a blockage and who is not. About half of people that have a normal ECG (heart wave test) do have a blockage and about half do not. Right now, people with a normal ECG may or may not first have the heart procedure. It is unknown which standard treatment is better.
This research study is comparing whether first having the heart procedure or first going to the intensive care unit is better for people with a normal ECG after cardiac arrest.
Cardiac arrest is an emergency and there is no time to get permission. In studies like this, a person’s consent is not always possible. This is called an exception from informed consent under emergency circumstances. This study meets the Office for Human Research Protections within the Department of Health and Human Services guidelines for exception from informed consent under emergency circumstances. This means, if you do not want to be in the study, you must request that you not be included.
Please contact us if you have questions about the risks and benefits of this study, exception from informed consent under emergency circumstances, or to get opt-out jewelry (such as a bracelet or necklace) if you do not want to be in this study. Contact Dr. Tom Aufderheide either by phone at (414) 805-6493, email at RRC@mcw.edu, or visit the website at www.mcw.edu/access.
