'Pocket paramedic' guards against sudden cardiac arrest

IMPLANTED DEFIBRILLATOR MEANS LIFE TO ESCONDIDO WOMAN

For a reminder of life's fragility, there's nothing quite like having your heart stop. On May 3, Cindy Gelormini of Escondido experienced that ultimate insecurity.

While walking with a friend, Natalie McCoy, Gelormini went into sudden cardiac arrest. She woke up in the hospital ---- three days later. The cause was ventricular fibrillation, a condition in which the heart twitches instead of pumping blood.

Had it not been for McCoy, who administered CPR until help arrived, Gelormini almost certainly would have died.

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