Israeli media report 4 cardiac events in one hour

Israeli media last week reported how four people went into cardiac arrest within the same hour and all were saved by defibrillators. 

According to Channel 12 News, four different men in various parts of the country suffered cardiac arrest within an hour, including a 30-year-old man from Haifa, a 71-year-old man from Nazareth, a 61-year-old man from Ramat Hasharon, and a 70-year-old man from Holon. 

“All were saved, all stabilized, and all are feeling well. It’s as if they came back to life from being clinically dead,” reported Channel 12, saying that it was only possible because of the defibrillators used by Magen David Adom, Israel’s emergency medical service. 

Israel began showing an inordinate enthusiasm for defibrillators last year when the machines were suddenly installed in more public locations across the country. In February, the Ministry of Education ordered 1,556 defibrillators to be installed in schools, which coincided with the country’s first COVID-19 child vaccine rollout.  

The same month, Magen David Adom established National Defibrillator Awareness Day and the Knesset held a special hearing to mark the day’s events. 

No official reason has been given to explain the newfound interest in defibrillators, but a recent study may explain it. 

The study, published in April and vigorously attacked by Israel’s Ministry of Health, found that the COVID-19 vaccine rollout saw a 25% increase in cardiovascular events.  

As reported by America’s Frontline News, researchers studied emergency calls in Israel, one of the most highly vaccinated countries in the world, over a two-and-a-half-year period spanning 2019-2021. Specifically, they looked at emergency calls reporting either cardiac arrests [CA] or acute coronary syndrome [ACS] in the 16-39yo age group.  

The study also aimed to determine if the uptick in cardiovascular events was associated with COVID-19 or the COVID-19 vaccine. The findings showed that for the period of January-May 2021, there was a 25% increase in emergency cardiovascular events compared with the same period in 2019 and 2020, and entirely associated with the COVID-19 shots.