Each day, approximately 750 Europeans suffer from an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest, which presents a large public health problem. In such circumstances, rapid activation of the Chain of Survival with effective and continuous realisation of its four links can have a large impact on survival. Mobile phones, which have become the most ubiquitous piece of modern technology, possess a strong potential to strengthen each link of the chain. Initially, they can be used to educate rescuers about appropriate actions performed in each step of the resuscitation process. However, mobile phones can also assume a more active role of helping the rescuer in a real medical emergency. They have a potential to allow for a faster and superior emergency medical services contact, assure a higher quality of cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and quicker retrieval of an automated external defibrillator and facilitate a finer post-resuscitation care through telemedical and clinical decision support systems. Smartphones, mobile phones with advanced computing abilities and connectivity, should be considered as medical devices, and their use, among lay rescuers and medical professionals in cardiovascular emergencies, further investigated and strongly encouraged. (C) 2011 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.
