A middle-aged woman in labor from Florida survived after a cardiac arrest lasting 45 minutes. Scientists cannot find an explanation of what happened at the Boca Raton Regional Hospital, and the press has already called it a miracle.
Even experienced obstetricians and resuscitators, who had participated in the rescuing of 40-year-old Ruby Graupera-Kassimiro, could not explain how it happened that Ruby’s brain had not been injured, despite the fact that her heart had stopped beating for 45 minutes. Now, we will tell everything step by step.
The doctors from Boca Raton Regional Hospital examined Ruby and pointed out the fact that natural childbirth could be difficult and dangerous to her health because of the initial degree of obesity. After consultations with the woman, it was decided to ease the delivery with a caesarean section.
Nowadays caesarean section is not considered a complex or risky surgery. However, something unexpected happened with Ruby: it was the case of rapidly developed amniotic embolism. After the child had been removed from the uterus, amniotic fluid got into the mother’s bloodstream, and she suffered a cardiac arrest.
Doctors applied defibrillation, but these measures were unsuccessful for 45 minutes. Only after the resuscitation efforts had ceased and the doctors were about to inform her husband of Ruby’s tragic outcome, the instrument detected the appearance of pulse. The miracles did not end there: a thorough examination of the “resurrected” woman did not reveal any lesions in the brain or other organs. Even Ruby’ skin was bearing no traces of an electric current, with which the doctors tried to bring her back to life.
As a result, the next day Ruby was disconnected from the ventilator, and a week later – after the healing of the postoperative scar – she was discharged from the hospital with a newborn daughter.
It is well known that the internal organs begin to suffer from oxygen starvation as a result of cardiac arrest. Within 5-6 minutes after the cessation of heartbeat, the brain death occurs – this moment is considered fatal, according to modern science. However, the case in Florida gives a fresh look at the problems of life and death.
