Is sudden cardiac death always caused by cardiac arrest?

Sudden cardiac death (SCD) is an unexpected and sudden death that is thought to be caused by a cardiac arrest brought on by a heart condition.

Tragically, thousands of people’s lives end this way every year in the UK.

A cardiac arrest is caused by a dangerously abnormal heart rhythm (arrhythmia). Some conditions increase the risk of having one, including inherited heart conditions, heart failure and a history of life-threatening heart rhythms.

Many people affected by SCD do not know they have, or are at risk, of these heart conditions, so their death comes out of the blue.

Because of this, doctors will study their body after death (a postmortem) to try and find out which heart condition caused their death.

However, sometimes doctors cannot find a cause for why someone has died from SCD because their heart appears normal at postmortem.

When this happens, the person’s cause of death will often be recorded as sudden arrhythmic death syndrome (SADS), which affects around 500 people in the UK every year.

Sometimes SADS is caused by inherited heart conditions that have gone undetected and can cause cardiac arrests.

But, someone may still be diagnosed with SADS, even if the structural changes to the heart that are usually seen by doctors on examination are too small to be seen.

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Losing someone to sudden cardiac death or SADS can be extremely difficult. You may ask yourself why it happened, and what happens next?

You may also be worried about your own health and that of your loved ones.

Whatever you’re feeling, support is available. Speak to your GP about your heart health and how to access local bereavement and support services.