Living in the Penthouse? New Study Suggests Residents of High Rise Buildings Have Lower Chances of Survival After a Cardiac Arrest

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With all the perks that come along with living on a penthouse, a new study suggests that there could be a downside to it and it could prove to be fatal.

While the researchers were quick to admit that the study cannot tell for sure that living on higher floors will account for more death, they found that based on their observation from about 8,000 cardiac arrest patients who lived in houses, townhomes, apartments and condos and who were responded by 911 emergency units, those who live in higher levels are more likely to have lower chance for survival when cardiac arrest strikes on them.

"The higher up you are, the worse off you are after a cardiac arrest," study author Ian Drennan who is a paramedic with York Region Paramedic Services and a researcher with Rescu, a group based at St. Michael's Hospital that studies emergency health care that begins outside of a hospital, says CBS News.

The findings of the observational study point out that out of the more than 8,000 patients who suffered cardiac arrests in a private residence and were treated by 911-initiated first responders, the chances of survival was at 3.8 percent. For those who live lower than the third level, 4.2 percent survived, or 252 out of 5,998 patients.

But for those who live higher than the third level, only 2.6 percent were able to make it, or 48 patients out of 1,844. Furthermore, a floor by floor analysis showed that those who live above the 16th floor have less than one percent survival rate, while those above the 25th floor have zero chances, Science Daily also reported.

"The 911 response time, from emergency activation to arrival of first responders on scene, will remain relatively constant, so long as traffic patterns do not change; however, the time from arrival on scene to initial patient contact may increase as more of the population comes to live at or above the third floor," the researchers wrote. "Thus, 911 response time may diminish in importance as a determinant for survival, whereas the time to patient contact may become more important in predicting who lives and who dies after out-of-hospital cardiac arrest."

In line with the study findings, the researchers recommend a number of solutions to avoid delays for the responders. They said that improvement can be achieved by allowing 911-initiated first responders to have sole access to elevators for emergency service without public interference, better placement of defibrillators to increase bystander use, CPR/AED training for residents of high-rise apartments, and the use of smartphones to activate volunteer first responders for patients with cardiac arrest.