Don't worry, sex is unlikely to trigger cardiac arrest

Cardiac arrest occurs when the heart unexpectedly stops beating, due to faulty electrical signaling that affects heart rate. Sudden cardiac arrest is, more often than not, fatal, and it requires immediate specialized attention in order for the worst outcome to be prevented.

According to the latest data available to the American Heart Association (AHA), in 2016, more than 350,000 people experienced a cardiac arrest outside of hospital, and, of these, only 12 percent survived.

The main factors that influence susceptibility to cardiac arrest include age, biological sex, race, and existing cardiovascular and metabolic conditions. Therefore, the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute say that older men, black people, and individuals with a diagnosis of coronary heart disease or diabetes are most at risk.

Because of the poor outcome of cardiac arrest, many who consider themselves at risk may try to avoid certain activities, such as sex, believing that they render them more exposed.

But new research on which a number of prestigious institutions — including Helsinki University Hospital in Finland and the Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, CA — collaborated has revealed that it is unlikely that cardiac arrest will occur during sexual intercourse.