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Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs) Are Great, But Don’t Fix All Heart Problems

June 14th, 2011 by IsisTheScientist in Health Tips
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I think one of the greatest public safety advances of the last 15 years has been the widespread installation of automated external defibrillators (AEDs). Automated external defibrillators are medical devices designed to deliver an electrical shock to the heart in ventricular fibrillation – a cardiac rhythm that is commonly associated with cardiac arrest.

Figure 1: ECG of a heart devolving into ventricular fibrillation.

I was working in emergency medicine when medical device companies first began to advocate for the placement of AEDs in public places and worked closely with many companies, organizations, and government agencies to incorporate AEDs into their emergency response plans. This wasn’t an easy sell in the late 1990s. People were worried about safety, liability, and cost. But, AED programs have been a great success. AEDs are most effective when they are used within 3-5 minutes of arrest. For example, if you have a cardiac arrest with ventricular fibrillation in New York City, Read more »

*This blog post was originally published at On Becoming a Domestic and Laboratory Goddess*

Paramedic Rap

July 16th, 2010 by Medgadget in Better Health Network, Health Tips, Humor, News, Video
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The Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation has held a “You Can Save a Life” video awareness contest, in which participants were invited to submit videos that raise awareness of cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and automated external defibrillators (AEDs). The 2010 grand prize winner is “Paramedic Rap” by 911 Emergency ROCKsponse, a college team that uses humor to get your attention about sudden cardiac arrest:

For more videos of contestants and previous competition winners, head over to the foundation’s YouTube channel.

*This blog post was originally published at Medgadget*