Episode 83: Cardiac arrest with Scott Weingart

In this episode of Critical Care Scenarios, hosts Brandon Odo and Brian Bolling interview Dr. Scott Weingart from the Emcrit podcast about the management of cardiac arrest patients. Dr. Weingart outlines his approach to handling cardiac arrests in the emergency department, emphasizing the importance of immediate defibrillation for patients in V-fib or V-tach. He advocates for a co-lead code system with a nurse co-leader to manage synchronous tasks, early placement of a supraglottic airway, and the use of arterial lines to guide epinephrine administration based on diastolic blood pressure. He also recommends using ultrasound for pulse checks and to identify reversible causes of arrest. Dr. Weingart touches on the importance of mechanical CPR, the use of anti-arrhythmics and double sequential defibrillation for persistent arrhythmias, and the factors influencing the duration of resuscitation efforts. Finally, he recommends running a norepinephrine infusion during the arrest and performing a full-body CT scan post-ROSC to identify the cause of the arrest and any iatrogenic injuries.