'Cardiac arrest 35,000 feet in air': Doctor saves woman's life on a flight, urges people to learn CPR

In an elaborate post 'Cardiac Arrest 35,000 feet in the air' on Twitter, Dr Kashif N Chaudhry, Director of Cardiac Electrophysiology at UPMC Health Beat, Williamsport said that on his flight to Phoenix, a young lady in her 20s passed out. He then went on to explain how he and two other doctors saved the woman's life

Hyderabad: In a heartening gesture, a US-based cardiologist along with his wife and another cardiologist on Saturday saved a woman in her 20s who suffered a cardiac arrest midair on a flight.

In an elaborate post 'Cardiac Arrest 35,000 feet in the air' on Twitter, Dr Kashif N Chaudhry, Director of Cardiac Electrophysiology at UPMC Health Beat, Williamsport said that on his flight to Phoenix, a young lady in her 20s passed out. Screams of panic by onlookers were quickly followed by an announcement of a medical emergency. “I reflexly ran to her seat. She was unresponsive, slumped over, eyes rolled back. I checked her carotid & radial pulses, she had none. We carried her on to the aisle & started CPR immediately,” he wrote.

Dr Kashif said that they quickly formed a team with his wife Naila Shereen and another cardiologist on board quickly dividing tasks. “While I performed CPR, the other cardiologist got an AED (Automated external defibrillators) from the plane’s first aid kit & applied it on the patient while Naila gathered relevant history from the patient’s accompanying friends & communicated with, & updated a medical team on the ground,” the doctor said.

The doctors' efforts paid off as the patient regained a pulse and was starting to be somewhat arousable after around 90 seconds of CPR, Dr Kashif said, adding within 10 mins, she was able to sit up and with support, we got her back to her seat.

Based on the doctors' shared assessment, the plane was diverted to the nearest airport and by the time plane landed, “she was far more oriented,” he said. He said that a preliminary EKG by EMS crew was unremarkable. While thanking the Almighty and the crew, the cardiologist advised people to learn CPR to potentially save someone’s life someday.

“But here is the reason I am sharing this story. What we did today, anyone can do. YOU can, as well. In a cardiac arrest, time is of the essence. Prompt & effective CPR is often the difference between life & death. Please learn CPR. You could be in a position to potentially save someone’s life someday, and they are likely going to be a loved one,” he wrote.