Eli5: what is the difference between a heart attack and a cardiac arrest?

Question

Eli5: what is the difference between a heart attack and a cardiac arrest?

In: 224

Answer 1

The medically precise terms are myocardial infarction and cardiac arrest. Heart attack usually refers to the first, but it’s not uncommon to hear it used generically for either. Since the number one cause of arrest is MI, it’s fine, but of course you can have arrest without infarction and vice versa.