By: Kathy Hubbard
Having just returned from a three-week adventure, I can attest to how heart stopping stressful air travel can be these days. For a man in Albany New York recently, it was literally heart stopping. As reported on local news station, Spectrum 1, John Bonhotal went into sudden cardiac arrest at the Southwest Airlines ticket counter.
Lucky for Bonhotal, employees jumped into action. CPR was employed, an automated external defibrillator (AED) was located, and emergency responders arrived in time. Bonhotal survived.
When interviewed about that day, Bonhotal said, “I was a little tired because it was early in the morning. I really was fine up until the moment I went down.”
Bonhotal is one of the roughly 350,000 people who suffer sudden cardiac arrest outside of the hospital each year. He is in the elite group of the 10 percent who survive. The American Heart Association’s website says, “CPR, especially if administered immediately after cardiac arrest, can double or triple a person’s chance of survival.”
We tend to think of heart-related issues as occurring in our older population, but it’s not necessarily the case with sudden cardiac arrest. It can happen at any age, and the occurrences in those between 25 and 44 years of age have been increasing in recent years.
Mayo Clinic says that in order to understand sudden cardiac arrest, we need to know more about the heart’s signaling system.
“Electric signals in the heart control the rate and rhythm of the heartbeat. Faulty or extra electrical signals can make the heart beat too fast, too slowly or in an uncoordinated way. Changes in the heartbeat are called arrhythmias. Some arrhythmias are brief and harmless. Others can lead to sudden cardiac arrest,” they explain.
“The most common cause of sudden cardiac arrest is an irregular heart rhythm called ventricular fibrillation. Rapid, erratic heart signals cause the lower heart chambers to quiver uselessly instead of pumping blood.”
Sudden cardiac arrest can happen to people without any known heart disease, or to those who have some conditions such as coronary artery disease; a previous heart attack; an enlarged heart (cardiomyopathy); a heart valve disease, or a congenital heart defect.
Some risk factors include a family history of heart disease, high blood pressure, high blood cholesterol, obesity, diabetes, smoking, and an inactive lifestyle. The risk is higher for those who are getting older, are male, who have low potassium or magnesium levels, chronic kidney disease or sleep apnea.
Long QT syndrome (LQTS) is a heart rhythm disorder that causes fast, chaotic heartbeats. It can cause sudden fainting and seizures. “Young people with LQTS syndrome have a higher risk of
sudden cardiac death,” Mayo says. They also say that there are genetic tests available to find out whether or not you have LQTS.
The checklist for prevention is what one might expect: eat healthily, stay active and get regular exercise, don’t smoke, have regular checkups, get screened for heart disease control blood pressure and cholesterol.
Bonhotal had no warning. He collapsed. No pulse. Not breathing. Unconscious. Some people may have chest discomfort, shortness of breath, a feeling of weakness, or a fast-beating, fluttering or pounding heartbeat called palpitations.
If you see someone who’s unconscious and not breathing call 911 immediately. Then start CPR. Right this minute, if you’ve never taken a class in CPR, go to YouTube and watch a video. It’s not rocket science; it’s a lifesaving technique.
“Push hard and fast on the person’s chest – about 100 to 120 pushes a minute. The pushes are called compressions. If you’ve been trained in CPR, check the person’s airway. Then deliver rescue breaths after every 30 compressions.” Mayo instructs.
“If you haven’t been trained, just continue chest compressions. Allow the chest to rise completely between each push. Keep doing this until an AED is available or emergency workers arrive.”
There are AEDs available for home use. Business owners should definitely have one at the workplace. They come with voice instructions for their use and are programmed to allow a shock only when appropriate. Every employee should know where the AED is located in the event of an emergency. It saved Bonhotal’s life, it could save yours.
Kathy Hubbard is a member of the Bonner General Health Foundation Advisory Council. She can be reached at [email protected]. This article was written for publication in the Bonner County Daily Bee on October 22, 2025.
