Man Wakes Up 5 Days After Heart Stopped

MINNEAPOLIS - A man, who slipped into a coma after his heart stopped, woke up five days later.

This winter, at 48 years old, Bill Dunbar was suffered from pneumonia. Late at night, his wife, Marilyn, woke him up gasping for air.

The nurse who just happened to get her CPR recertification that day started compressions and called 9-1-1. When paramedics arrived, Dunbar had no heart rhythm.

After more than 10 minutes, they finally shocked Dunbar back to life and rushed him to Abbott Northwestern, where doctors cooled his body to preserve brain function. At the hospital Marilyn asked the doctors if Dunbar had any chance of waking up. The neurologist told her it was not going to happen.

Five days after his heart stopped, Dunbar woke up from his coma, defying the doctor’s prediction. Doctors said before the cooling protocol, Dunbar would have had a half percent chance at survival.