Pii: S0300-9572(00)00284-7

The ILCOR algorithm presents the actions to take and decisions to face for all people who appear to be in cardiac arrest±unconscious, unresponsive, without signs of life. The victim is not breathing normally, and no rescuer can feel a carotid pulse within 10 to 15 seconds. Since 1992 the resuscitation community has examined and recon®rmed the wisdom of most recommendations formulated by international groups through the 1990s. Sophisticated clinical trials provided high-level evidence on which to base several new drugs and interventions. Finally, we have learned that we should continue to place a strong emphasis after 2000 on building a base of critically appraised, international scienti®c evidence. Evidence-based review opened many eyes; only a small proportion of resuscitation care rests on a base of solid evidence. Note: The numbers below, such as `1 (Fig. 1),' match numbers in the algorithms.