What happens if your heart suddenly stops

Causes and risk factors include drug abuse, abnormal heart rhythms, heart disease, smoking, ventricular fibrillation, high cholesterol, or previous heart attack (not inclusive).If this happens, blood stops flowing to the brain and other vital organs.The heart is still pumping blood around the body during a heart attack.Some of these effects are rebound high blood pressure when antihypertensive medicines are suddenly stopped, heart attacks when daily low doses of aspirin are.A hard, direct blow to the heart, or other damage that directly pierces the heart, can also cause it to rupture.

If the heart stops pumping for > 5 minutes, the risk of brain damage increases.Some kinds of physical stress also can lead to sudden cardiac arrest, including:If something goes wrong, your heart can beat too fast, too slowly or irregularly (arrhythmia).The valsalva maneuver, bearing down, and cold water stimulate the vagus nerve, which helps control the heart rate.How long can you live when your heart stops beating?

Read more on sudden cardiac death.After three minutes, global cerebral ischemia —the lack of bloodThey may occur regularly, several times a day, or very infrequently, once or twice a.Once the brain is affected to a sufficient degree, death is inevitable.The tendency to have arrhythmias, which can lead to sudden cardiac.

But sometimes palpitations can be signs of trouble.Unlike heart attacks, which are due to blocked arteries, this condition occurs when there's a problem with your heart's electrical system.Cardiac arrest occurs when your heart suddenly stops beating.