The American Heart Association announced $3.4 million in grants for two multidisciplinary research teams to lead a new initiative focused on cardiac arrest. With more than 600,000 cardiac arrests occurring annually in the U.S. and survival rates remaining low, the funding aims to advance scientific understanding and improve treatment and recovery. The initiative also establishes the Cardiac Arrest Research Team (CART) Network, a collaboration with Heart & Stroke, the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada, to accelerate discoveries across both countries.
One team, led by Joshua Lupton, M.D., M.P.H., M.Phil., of Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU), will research out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. The study, titled "Accelerating Successful Defibrillation and Survivor Recovery for Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest," will examine defibrillator pad placement and timing of shocks using artificial intelligence. The team will also work with survivors to identify best practices for post-arrest support. According to the American Heart Association, this research could lead to low-cost improvements in emergency care.
The second team, led by Ari Moskowitz, M.D., M.P.H., FAHA, of the Albert Einstein College of Medicine and Montefiore Health System, will focus on in-hospital cardiac arrest. The "Vasopressor Strategy in Cardiac Arrest to Optimize Recovery" (VICTORY-CART) study will compare two commonly used blood pressure medicines to determine which improves survival and brain function. The team will also establish a learning health system to generate real-world evidence for consistent treatment across hospitals.
Both teams will integrate perspectives from cardiac arrest survivors, family members, and those who lost loved ones. Stacey E. Rosen, M.D., FAHA, volunteer president of the American Heart Association, emphasized the urgency: "Cardiac arrest is a profound and tragic occurrence and we know seconds matter." The initiative aligns with the Association's Emergency Cardiovascular Care 2030 Impact Goals to double cardiac arrest survival rates within five years.
The four-year grants, starting July 1, 2026, are part of the Association's $6.1 billion investment in cardiovascular research since 1949. More information is available at heart.org or stroke.org.
