AED

Your heart in an electrical system that manages the rate and rhythm of your heart. It’s possible that the rhythm can be thrown off which is medically known as arrhythmia. During this condition the heart beat is in an irregular manner also called as arrhythmia.   This condition impacts more than 300,000 people in the United States experience a sudden cardiac arrest every year and only ten percent of the total victims survive.  

When this condition occurs you should first contact emergency services.  The next step is to begin CPR.  Cardiopulmonary resuscitation or CPR is an emergency treatment that is administered to victims of sudden cardiac arrest.   According to this procedure, the person performing it should press the victim’s chest in a rhythmic pattern so as to allow normal blood flow. It also involves exhaling in to a person so as to fill his lungs with oxygen.

The American Red Cross 2010 CPR Guidelines state a caregiver should remember the CAB method.

The main purpose of cardiopulmonary resuscitation is to allow oxygen to flow to the brain and heart. To re-start the heart defibrillation is required.

The second step if the person has not regained consciousness is to connect a portable defibrillator to the person.  Start by connection the electrode pads to the patient’s chest in order to study the electrical output of the heart. The defibrillator will then provide visual and verbal instructions to the caregiver.  The AED will then “shock” the patient if there is no heartbeat.

Once the shock is delivered, the defibrillator will re-access the patient to determine in another shock is required.Using an automated external defibrillator increases the patient’s chances of survival by seventy percent. More than 40,000 lives have been saved by using an AED.

If CPR and defibrillation are started within the first 5 minutes of collapse the chances of survival are increased 80 percent.  

You never know when someone will experience SCA and as a result, you should always make sure your aed pads and aed battery are fully charged and ready to go.