Near-death experiences and electrocardiogram patterns in out-of-hospital cardiac arrest survivors: a prospective observational study

Zalika Klemenc–ketiš; Štefek Grmec; Janko Kersnik

doi:10.22514/sv62.102011.4

Near-death experiences and electrocardiogram patterns in out-of-hospital cardiac arrest survivors: a prospective observational study

Zalika Klemenc–ketiš, Štefek Grmec, Janko Kersnik

Signa Vitae 2011 DOI: 10.22514/sv62.102011.4 (opens in new tab)

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Study at a glance

AI-extracted from the abstract

Characteristics	Prospective observational study Peer reviewed
Sample size	52
Population	Patients after out-of-hospital primary cardiac arrest in Slovenia
Measures	Greyson's near-death experiences scale
Topics	Near-death experience
Citations	3
Key findings	Patients with ventricular fibrillation had fewer NDEs than others (12.2% vs. 54.5%), while those with pulseless electrical activity had more (60.0% vs. 11.9%). Defibrillation attempts were associated with fewer NDEs (62.5% vs. 13.6%). The authors suggest a possible correlation between ECG pattern and NDE incidence.

Abstract

Aim. To determine the effect of several factors, that are a part of cardiac arrest and resuscitation, on the incidence of near-death experiences (NDEs).Methods. We conducted a prospective observational study in the three largest hospitals in Slovenia in a consecutive sample of patients after out-of-hospital primary cardiac arrest. The presence of NDE was assessed with the self-administered Greyson’s near-death experiences scale. The electrocardiogram pattern at the beginning of resuscitation was recorded. Main outcome measure was the presence of near-death experiences. Univariate analysis was used.Results. The study included 52 patients. There were 42 (80.8%) males in the sample; median age ± standard deviation of the patients was 53.1 ± 14.5 years. Near-death experiences were reported by 11 (21.2%) patients. Patients with ventricular fibrillation had significantly less NDEs than other patients (12.2% vs. 54.5%, P = 0.006). Patients with pulseless electrical activity had significantly more NDEs than others (60.0% vs. 11.9%, P = 0.003). Patients with asystole and pulseless electrical fibrillation had significantly more NDEs than patients who had ventricular fibrillation and ventricular tachycardia (60.0% vs. 11.9%, P = 0.003). Patients with at least one defibrillation attempt had significantly less near-death experiences than others (62.5% vs. 13.6%, P = 0.007).Conclusion. Our study found a possible correlation between electrocardiogram pattern in cardiac arrest patients and the incidence of near-death experiences. Further studies should address this problem in larger samples.

Comparable studies

Other observational and cohort studies on near-death experience, most cited first.

Study	Year	Design	Participants
Near-death experience in survivors of cardiac arrest: a prospective study in the Netherlands Cardiac patients successfully resuscitated after cardiac arrest in ten Dutch hospitals	2001	Prospective cohort study	n = 344
Incidence and correlates of near-death experiences in a cardiac care unit Cardiac inpatients at a tertiary care center	2003	Observational cohort	n = 1,595
Features of "near-death experience" in relation to whether or not patients were near death Patients who believed they were near death during an illness or after an injury and...	1990	Observational cohort	n = 58
The phenomenology of near-death experiences Subjects who reported near-death experiences	1980	Retrospective study	n = 78
Near-Death Experiences and the Temporal Lobe Individuals who reported having had a near-death experience during a life-threatening...	2004	Observational cohort

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