People often use the terms heart attack and cardiac arrest interchangeably, but it may come as a surprise to learn they are not the same thing.



The damage done is greater the longer a person goes without treatment.

Symptoms of a heart attack may be immediate and intense, but more often they start slowly and persist for hours, days or weeks beforehand.

Unlike with sudden cardiac arrest, which occurs suddenly and without warning, the heart usually does not stop beating during a heart attack.

A cardiac arrest and heart attack are very different

A cardiac arrest is triggered by an electrical malfunction in the heart that causes an irregular heartbeat and can cause death within minutes if the victim isn’t treated.

While the two heart conditions are different, they are linked as a sudden cardiac arrest can occur after a heart attack – or during recovery.

5 differences between a heart attack and a cardiac arrest

  1. A heart attack is not the same as a cardiac arrest.
  2. A heart attack is when one of the coronary arteries becomes blocked. The heart muscle is robbed of its vital blood supply and, if left untreated, will begin to die because it is not getting enough oxygen.
  3. A cardiac arrest is when a person’s heart stops pumping blood around their body and they stop breathing normally.
  4. Many cardiac arrests in adults happen because of a heart attack. This is because a person who is having a heart attack may develop a dangerous heart rhythm, which can cause a cardiac arrest.
  5. A heart attack and a cardiac arrest are both emergency situations. Call 999 straight away.
Someone carrying out CPR

What to do if you think someone is having a heart attack

Send someone to call 999 for an ambulance immediately.





A heart attack and a cardiac arrest are both emergency situations

What to do if you think someone is having a cardiac arrest

If you see someone having a cardiac arrest, you need to act quickly as they’ll only have a chance of surviving if they receive life-saving first aid immediately.

You need to call 999 and give immediate CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation).

You should also ask any bystanders to find a defibrillator.

