Winter 2024 - 18

POLICE
Cardiac Arrest
Exploring the top killer in active and retired cops
By Jonathan Sheinberg, CEO Sigma Tactical Fitness
L
aw enforcement is certainly a stressful
profession, but it is not unique regarding
stress. Stress is ubiquitous in our society.
However, police officers are known to have a
stress pattern that is unique and very different
than what is seen in individuals in the civilian
sector. In data from more than 4,500 US law
enforcement officers (LEOs) from 1984 to 2010,
it was found the risk of sudden cardiac death
was 34-69 times higher during restraints and
altercations, 32-51 times higher during pursuits,
20-23 times higher during physical training,
and six-to-nine times higher during medical/
rescue operations.
The inherent nature of policing consists of
long periods of routine and sometimes mundane
patrol or investigation punctuated by short
periods of intense excitement which results
18 | Tactical Training & Conditioning | Winter 2024
in accelerated adrenaline release. This is the
so-called pattern of policing which is often
described as " 98% boredom and 2% sheer
terror. " This unexpected and rapid secretion of
adrenaline results in several rapid physiological
changes. Initially, there is a sudden increase in
heart rate and blood pressure. There is repeated
Valsalva maneuver (increased intrathoracic
pressure from breath holding and bearing down),
as well as activation of both the left and right
hemispheres of the brain as the officer uses
both sides of his or her upper and lower body in
offensive and defensive threat mitigation.
A strategy to prevent heart attacks requires
an understanding of the simple pathophysiology
of how these events occur. A heart attack, or
myocardial infarction (MI) occurs when one of
the coronary arteries that supplies the heart is
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Winter 2024

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Winter 2024
