Burden of sudden death in young adults: A one-year observational study at a tertiary care centre in India
Background & objectives Sudden death, defined as death occurring within one hour of symptom onset in witnessed cases or within 24 h of last being seen alive in unwitnessed cases, remains a major public health concern. This study aimed to evaluate the incidence, causes, and risk factors associated with sudden death in young adults. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted over one year at a tertiary care centre in New Delhi. Cases meeting the definition of sudden death were included, excluding trauma, suicide, homicide, and drug abuse. Each case underwent whole-body imaging, autopsy, and histopathological examination. A multidisciplinary team comprising forensic experts, pathologists, radiologists, and clinicians determined the cause of death. Comparative analysis was performed between sudden death in young adults (18-45 yr) and older adults (46-65 yr). Results Out of 2214 autopsies, 180 cases (8.1%) met the criteria for sudden death. Sudden death in young accounted for 103 (57.2%) cases. Mean age was 33.6 yr in sudden death in young (IQR=10) and 53.8 years in sudden death in old, with male predominance in both. Cardiovascular causes were most common in young (n=40, 42.6%), followed by respiratory causes (n=20, 21.3%) and sudden unexplained deaths (n=20, 21.3%), where no pathology was identified. Other causes included gastrointestinal, central nervous system, and genitourinary pathologies. Smoking and alcohol intake was equally prevalent in those who died young and at old age. Interpretation & conclusions Sudden death in young adults is a significant concern requiring targeted public health strategies. Coronary artery disease remains the leading cause. Respiratory and unexplained deaths warrant further investigation.
Authors
- Shivanand Gamanagatti (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0145-4050)
- Surabhi Jain (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4858-8950)
- Tanvir Kaur (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4270-137X)
- Leve Joseph Devarajan Sebastian (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4777-2804)
- Manisha Jana (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7449-6596)
- Deepali Jain (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5315-9814)
- Ansh Goswami
- Abhishek Yadav (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8396-497X)
- Ajay Bahl
- Rupinder Singh Dhaliwal (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6011-0346)
- Satyavir Yadav (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0859-4048)
- Sudheer Kumar Arava (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0403-5908)
- Ambuj Roy (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6418-4388)
- Purushottam Sharma (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8037-7152)
- Chitra Sarkar (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4315-9316)
- M.V. Padma Srivastava (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7615-9411)
- Venugopalan Y. Vishnu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3654-8137)
- Ruma Ray (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9620-8321)
- Sanjeev Kumar (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3467-8958)
- Sudhir Kumar Gupta (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2071-1518)
- Abilash Srinivasa Murthy
- Amar Ranjan
- Kulbhushan Prasad
- Venkateswaran K. Iyer (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1933-7562)
- Vivek Lal (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7050-1183)
- Anant Mohan
- Vaishali Suri
- Tabin Millo
- Shivangi Dagar
- S. Tanwar
Institutions
- Vardhman Mahavir Medical College & Safdarjung Hospital (IN)
- Indian Council of Medical Research (IN)
- Cognitive Neuroimaging Lab (FR)
- Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (IN)
- All India Institute of Medical Sciences (IN)
Publication Details
- Journal
- The Indian Journal of Medical Research
- Published
- 2025-12-08
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.25259/ijmr_938_2025
- Primary Topic
- Autopsy Techniques and Outcomes
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00
Funders
- Indian Council of Medical Research