A report of a patient with Lazarus phenomenon (the return of spontaneous circulation after cardiopulmonary
resuscitation) following cardiac arrest (myocardium
ischemia) is presented. A 65 year patient was found
unconscious at home. He taken to the emergency
department On arrival he was unconscious, his pupils fixed
and dilated bilaterally. Resuscitation proceeded for 55
minutes. He was then pronounced dead. Forty minutes later
spontaneous breathing was noted and his blood pressure
was 110/48 and heart rate 90bpm. He survived a further 13
days in the coronary care unit. The implications for
management of cardiac arrest in the emergency and medical
department are discussed.