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Rochester, MN (KROC-AM News) - Rochester has long been listed among the best places in the world when it comes to surviving cardiac arrest, and the Mayo Clinic is launching a new initiative in hopes of improving that survival rate.

Starting this month, Mayo Clinic will offer early ECMO treatments to certain cardiac arrest patients. ECMO stands for extracorporeal membrane oxygenation and is a device and procedure that provides heart and lung support for patients without a heartbeat that has been in use for many years. The new initiative involves a system where the emergency department staff will receive an alert from first responders to gather and bring the tools needed to begin ECMO treatments almost as soon as the patient arrives at the ER.

Mayo Clinic surgical, anesthesia and emergency department teams have been undergoing extensive training and drills to prepare for the launch of the new protocol. A news release says Mayo Clinic decided to pursue the strategy based on a recent study that found the chances of survival increased by six-fold for certain cardiac patients who had early access to ECMO treatments and chest compressions.

"The added component of this is identifying that small group of patients that may actually benefit from transport to the hospital quickly — that are in cardiac arrest — that would benefit from this ECMO activation," explains Dr. Anuradha Luke, medical director of Mayo Clinic Ambulance.

According to the American Heart Association, the national survival rate for sudden cardiac arrest outside of a hospital is below 10%. The same organization recently put the survival rate in Rochester at above 50%.

Rochester Restaurants from A to Z (Almost)

Next time you are trying to figure out where to eat in Rochester, just pick a letter from A to Z and scroll a little bit to see what restaurant you will be eating at tonight. It is the easiest way to make a decision! DISCLAIMER: If you pick "Q", "x" or "y" you will need to pick again.

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