News 8
What's the difference between a cardiac arrest and heart attack? 
05:56 PM CDT on Friday, June 26, 2009
>DALLAS - Cardiac arrest is not the same as a heart attack, though many people use the terms interchangeably.
In fact, there is a vast difference between the two.
Heart attack can cause cardiac arrest, but not the other way around.
As news of Michael Jackson's death made it to one Dallas hospital room, Norman Capps realized how lucky he is to be in a bed, instead of a box.
"I'm glad I got a scar rather than a coffin," he said.
Capps had emergency bypass surgery before suffering a heart attack or cardiac arrest.
There is a difference.
A heart attack starts with a blockage in one or more arteries, leading to the heart. That causes a portion of the heart muscle to be damaged. There are often warning signs, including shortness of breath and chest pain.
Cardiac arrest happens when electrical impulses in the heart become too fast or erratic - causing the heart to stop beating. There are often no warning signs.
"There are about 300,000 people a year that die suddenly with a heart rhythm disturbance and only three percent of them actually survive, if found by the EMS department or resuscitated. So it's a pretty bad prognosis," said Dr. Tony Das, a cardiologist of Texas Health Dallas.
Das says people who suffer cardiac arrest often pass a physical, as Michael Jackson had just a few months ago.
Capps had experienced months of fatigue and shortness of breath, which he denied was a problem.
He now wonders if Jackson kept similar secrets.
"It's a pity for Jackson, if he had the symptoms I had, he could have maybe saved himself," Capps said.
High cholesterol often contributes to heart attacks.
Heredity and trauma are common causes of cardiac arrest, as are prescription drugs.
The latter is being investigated in Michael Jackson's case.
E-mail jstjames@wfaa.com.
