Colin Fielder, 39, was dead for 40 minutes due to cardiac arrest before he was brought back to life through the use of two new techniques recently adopted for trial by the Australian hospital where he was taken.
And nor is he the first.
According to a press release from the hospital where Fielder was treated, a total of seven cardiac patients have been treated with the mechanical CPR device called AutoPulse with an extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) machine used to keep oxygen and blood flowing to the patient’s brain and vital organs.
By using the two devices together, the press release further explains, doctors are able to diagnose the cardiac condition as well as treat it faster all the while maintaining the constant flow of blood and oxygen vital to reducing the risk of disability after resuscitation.
In all, three patients have been successfully revived using this method, each of whom were clinically dead for 40 to 60 minutes, according to News.com.au.
“The results are exciting and thankfully the manufacturer is providing us with more so now we are looking to expand the use of the device across more areas of Melbourne and are deciding on where they would be best placed,” Steven Barnard, the senior intensive care physician at the hopsital where Fielder was treated, said regarding AutoPulse.
Of the use of the ECMO in treating cardiac patients, Barnard said the results of the trial carried out at his hospital could likely result in its expanded use in not only other hospitals, but ambulances as well.
Regarding his recovery, Fielder said he’s overwhelmed with thanks, especially given the fact that had he been taken to any other hospital in Victoria where he lives, the results could have been much different.
“I’m so grateful, more than I could ever say,” he told the Herald Sun.
And while he hasn’t reported any book deal regarding his experience, he does say that since the heart attack he's taking a new approach to life by quitting smoking and no longer sweating the small stuff.