ObjectiveIschemia/reoxygenation following cardiopulmonary resuscitation might cause endothelial injury/activation that could contribute to an adverse outcome after cardiopulmonary resuscitation. We studied plasma concentrations of von Willebrand factor (vWF) antigen and soluble intracellular adhesion molecule (sICAM)-1 as markers of a generalized endothelial injury/activation in relation to outcome after cardiopulmonary resuscitation.DesignRetrospective study on stored plasma samples.SettingIntensive care unit at a university hospital.PatientsThirty-five patients who survived >24 hrs after in- or out-of-hospital cardiopulmonary resuscitation and 15 noncritically ill control patients.InterventionsBlood sampling.Measurements and Main ResultsPlasma concentrations of vWF antigen and sICAM-1 on day 2 after cardiopulmonary resuscitation were higher in patients than in controls (p< .001 andp= .001, respectively). In-hospital cardiopulmonary resuscitation, cardiopulmonary resuscitation duration ≥15 mins, severe cardiovascular failure, and renal dysfunction/failure at the time of blood sampling were associated with significant elevations in vWF antigen and sICAM-1 concentrations. Patients with an unfavorable outcome after cardiopulmonary resuscitation (cerebral performance category ≥3) exhibited higher vWF antigen and sICAM-1 concentrations than patients with good outcome (cerebral performance category 1–2;p< .001 andp= .097, respectively). Renal dysfunction/failure, severe cardiovascular failure, systemic inflammatory response syndrome, and cardiopulmonary resuscitation duration ≥15 mins were also associated with higher adverse outcome rates. Combination of these four variables into a cardiac arrest risk score (levels 0–4) showed adverse outcome rates of 100, 56, and 0% in patients with arrest scores of 4, 2–3, and 0–1, respectively. A vWF antigen concentration >166% was an independent predictor of outcome after cardiopulmonary resuscitation (p= .002) and was associated with increased adverse outcome rates in patients with cardiac arrest risk scores of 2–3. Furthermore, both vWF antigen concentrations >166% and sICAM-1 concentrations >500 ng/mL had 100% specificity for an adverse outcome in patients after out-of-hospital cardiopulmonary resuscitation but were less predictive in patients after in-hospital cardiopulmonary resuscitation.ConclusionsvWF antigen and sICAM-1 might be useful adjunctive variables for early determination of outcome in patients after successful out-of-hospital cardiopulmonary resuscitation.