What is the most common electrical disturbance that results in cardiac arrest in adults?

The most common electrical disturbance that results in cardiac arrest in adults is ventricular fibrillation. This condition occurs when the heart’s electrical signals become chaotic, leading to uncoordinated contractions of the heart muscle. As a result, the heart cannot effectively pump blood, which can rapidly lead to a loss of consciousness and death.

Ventricular fibrillation is particularly critical because it is a shockable rhythm; immediate defibrillation can often restore a normal heart rhythm and can significantly improve survival rates if performed quickly. This is a key reason why early recognition and prompt intervention in cases of cardiac arrest are so important in emergency medicine.

While other rhythms such as asystole, ventricular tachycardia, and atrial fibrillation can also be related to cardiac events, they do not occur as frequently as ventricular fibrillation in cases leading to cardiac arrest. Asystole, for example, represents a total absence of electrical activity and is not typically a shockable rhythm, making it less common as a precursor to cardiac arrest when compared to ventricular fibrillation.