Machine costing €3,000 could cut heart attack mortality rate, says charity

THE lives of many heart attack victims could be saved by the increased availability of a low-cost medical device in airports, shopping centres and other public areas.

The public availability of defibrillators, which provide an electric shock to restart the heart, is still too low, according to the cardiac support charity, Croí.

"They're relatively inexpensive to buy around €3,000 each. If you look at it from a public health perspective, I challenge you to find anything else which reduces the mortality rate so easily," said chief executive Neil Johnson.