Hyderabad: On April 4, a 21-year-old engineering student collapsed on the ground while fielding during a cricket match at the CMR Engineering College in Medchal. He was shifted to a hospital. However, doctors declared him dead and said he had suffered a cardiac arrest. When media organisations approached the college and the police authorities, they said the youth had died of a “heart attack” — something that is not the same as a cardiac arrest but few know.The death of the student on a playing field not only adds to the list of deaths due to cardiac arrests among young people, but also sheds light on how the two terms – heart attack and cardiac arrest – are used interchangeably despite both the events requiring a different kind and level of treatment.According to Dr Vijay Rao, a basic life support (BLS) and advanced cardiovascular life support (ACLS) instructor, who works at the alumni centre at Gandhi Medical College, a person is still breathing in the event of a heart attack. He will have a pulse and will be responsive, although he may complain of severe chest or left arm pain. It occurs when the blood flow to the heart is blocked, usually by a clot.A cardiac arrest is a different event altogether — it can occur suddenly, anywhere, and the person's pulse, breathing, and responsiveness will stop immediately.“While all heart attacks may lead to cardiac arrests, not all cardiac arrests are caused by heart attacks,” he explained.“Nearly 70 per cent to 80 per cent of the sudden cardiac arrests are a result of Ischemic heart disease (IHD). Symptoms of it are generally chest pain or discomfort, shortness of breath, pain in the upper body including arms, shoulders, neck and jaw, and fast and irregular heartbeat. About 14 per cent are due to hypertrophy, and about four or five per cent are due to genetic syndrome, Long QT syndrome, lack of potassium channels through the heart, and nearly 10 per cent to 15 per cent due to Cardiomyopathy; among a few reasons to name,” Dr Vijay Rao said.The first step to act on in the event of a cardiac arrest is to dial 108. The dial should be followed up with chest compressions, around 100-120 per minute, in the middle of the chest, and only until the patient regains their pulse and starts breathing. Continuing after this, may lead to physical injuries and might obstruct the regular blood flow.Speaking of avoiding such untoward incidents in the future, Dr Rao said that the availability of an automated external defibrillator (AED) would help greatly. “Our governments do not focus on the availability of this, despite its easy usage and urgency. Nearly 1.8 crore people have experienced cardiac arrests - a number that exceeds the total number of cancer patients.”He further said, “Especially for sportsmen, the AED is highly crucial. Two cricketers had died of cardiac arrest within a span of two months. All the machine requires you to do is placing the pads on the patient's chest. It will analyse the heart rhythm, and if a shockable rhythm is detected, it will direct you to press the button to deliver the shock.”“When CPR and AED are used within the first five to six minutes of a cardiac arrest, the survival rate is as high as 80 per cent,” he said.