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. 2025 Apr 1;17(4):e81572.
doi: 10.7759/cureus.81572. eCollection 2025 Apr.

Cardiac Arrest Simulation Response Time: A Comparative Study in Preclinical Medical Education

Mari Stefani Ascano-Ravelo  1 , Danielle L Drew  1 , Elias M Bouyounes  1 , Tom Lindsey  1 , Michael J Parks  1
Affiliations

Cardiac Arrest Simulation Response Time: A Comparative Study in Preclinical Medical Education

Mari Stefani Ascano-Ravelo et al. Cureus. .

Abstract

Introduction Medical students often face a critical challenge when transitioning from academia to real-world clinical practice, especially in life-or-death situations such as cardiac arrests. Despite extensive classroom training, newly trained physicians often feel unprepared for actual emergencies. Simulation-based learning has emerged as a crucial tool in bridging this gap, offering students realistic scenarios for practicing life-saving skills, such as cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). This study aimed to assess whether increased exposure to simulated cardiac arrest scenarios enhances the response time of first-year medical students when initiating CPR. Methods A total of 29 first-year medical students were randomized into two groups: the "lethal treatment arm" and the "normal treatment arm," differing in the frequency of CPR simulations. All participants completed a pre-test, followed by six practice simulations, and a final test. The time to initiate CPR ("time to chest") was recorded and compared between the two groups. Results Results showed significant reductions in CPR response times from the initial to final simulation for both groups, though no statistically significant difference was found between the two groups in terms of response time improvement. Conclusion This suggests that even limited exposure to CPR simulations significantly enhances medical students' readiness to respond to cardiac arrests. Further research is needed to determine the optimal quantity and frequency of simulation training for maintaining high-quality CPR performance among medical students.

Keywords: cardiac arrhythmia; emergency medicine resuscitation; medical student training; response time; simulation in medical education; skills and simulation training.

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Conflict of interest statement

Human subjects: Consent for treatment and open access publication was obtained or waived by all participants in this study. Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine Institutional Review Board issued approval 2061855-3. Animal subjects: All authors have confirmed that this study did not involve animal subjects or tissue. Conflicts of interest: In compliance with the ICMJE uniform disclosure form, all authors declare the following: Payment/services info: All authors have declared that no financial support was received from any organization for the submitted work. Financial relationships: All authors have declared that they have no financial relationships at present or within the previous three years with any organizations that might have an interest in the submitted work. Other relationships: All authors have declared that there are no other relationships or activities that could appear to have influenced the submitted work.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. Results from the demographic pre-survey, indicating the number of participants who have had experience, or exposure at minimum, to a cardiac arrest scenario prior to medical school.
Figure 2
Figure 2. CONSORT diagram of participant flow performed in this randomized, comparative study.
CONSORT, Consolidated Standards of Reporting Trials
Figure 3
Figure 3. The lethal treatment arm had a median decrease in response times from pre- to post-intervention of 15.5 seconds.
Figure 4
Figure 4. The normal treatment arm had a median decrease in response times from pre- to post-intervention of 21.25 seconds.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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