Your patient is a 15-year-old male who was struck in the chest with a baseball. He is unresponsive, pulseless, and apneic. The monitor shows ventricular fibrillation. This condition is most accurately described as:

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The description of being struck in the chest with a baseball, followed by sudden collapse, pulselessness, and ventricular fibrillation is characteristic of commotio cordis, which is a type of cardiac arrest caused by a direct blow to the chest during a specific part of the cardiac cycle. Pericardial tamponade, blunt cardiac injury, and traumatic asphyxia are all possible causes of cardiac arrest, but they do not fit the specific description provided in this scenario.

Your Patient Is a 15-Year-Old Male Who Was Struck in the Chest