As more members of the public take part in cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), survival rates for patients who suffer sudden cardiac arrest are continuing to rise. Patients who received CPR were 2.7 times more likely to survive than those who did not, underscoring again the importance of an initial response.
According to the "2025 first-half sudden cardiac arrest survey" released by the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency on the 18th, the survival rate for sudden cardiac arrest patients in the first half of last year was 9.4%, up 0.2 percentage points from the same period a year earlier (9.2%).
Among sudden cardiac arrest patients, 1,501 were discharged alive. However, the rate of neurological recovery—defined as the share of patients whose brain function recovered enough to carry out daily activities—was 6.2%, down 0.2 percentage points from the same period a year earlier (6.4%).
Expanded public CPR is cited as a key driver of higher survival rates. In the first half of this year, the bystander CPR implementation rate was 32.9%, up 2.7 percentage points from 30.2% in the first half of last year.
When the public performed CPR, the patient survival rate was 15.3%. By contrast, when CPR was not performed, the survival rate was 5.6%. The neurological recovery rate also showed a wide gap: 11.5% with CPR versus 3.3% without. When bystander CPR was performed, the survival rate was 2.7 times higher and the neurological recovery rate was 3.5 times higher.
The main causes of sudden cardiac arrest were heart diseases such as myocardial infarction and arrhythmia, and illnesses such as stroke, accounting for 77.6%.
As for where cases occurred, nonpublic places such as homes and long-term care facilities accounted for 65.6%, far more than public places (18.6%). In particular, homes were the most common setting at 47.0%.
The agency urged that when a sudden cardiac arrest patient is witnessed, people should call 119 immediately and perform CPR until paramedics arrive. It also said it is important to actively use an automated external defibrillator (AED) if one is available nearby.
Im Seung-gwan, commissioner of the agency, said, "It is very positive that the survival rate of sudden cardiac arrest patients continues to rise," adding, "As the importance of CPR—critical to patient survival—has been reaffirmed, we will continue to strengthen education and publicity."