Posted on 09/21/2024 7:27:42 AM PDT by ConservativeMind
Joshua Lupton, M.D., has no memory of his own cardiac arrest in 2016. He only knows that first responders resuscitated his heart with a shock from a defibrillator, ultimately leading to his complete recovery and putting him among fewer than one in 10 people nationwide who survive cardiac arrest outside of a hospital.
He attributes his survival to the rapid defibrillation he received from first responders—but not everybody is so fortunate.
Now, he and co-authors say the study suggests the position in which responders initially place the two defibrillator pads on the body may make a significant difference in returning spontaneous blood circulation after shock from a defibrillator.
Researchers used data from the Portland Cardiac Arrest Epidemiologic Registry, which comprehensively recorded the placement position of defibrillation pads from July 1, 2019, through June 30, 2023. For purposes of the study, researchers reviewed 255 cases treated by Tualatin Valley Fire & Rescue, where the two pads were placed either at the front and side or front and back.
They found placing the pads in front and back had 2.64-fold greater odds of returning spontaneous blood circulation, compared with placing the pads on the person's front and side.
The current common knowledge among health care professionals is that pad placement—whether front and side, or front and back—is equally beneficial in cardiac arrest.
"The key is, you want energy that goes from one pad to the other through the heart," said Mohamud Daya, M.D.
Placing the pads in the front and back may effectively "sandwich" the heart, raising the possibility that the electrical current will be delivered more comprehensively to the organ.
However, that's not readily possible in many cases. For example, the patient may be overweight or positioned in such a way that they can't be easily moved.
(Excerpt) Read more at medicalxpress.com ...
If the patient can’t be moved, one wonders about placing the pads on opposite sides.
I used to wonder what was the deal when in Breaking Bad, that Mondregal executive committed suicide using a defibrillator. I didn’t know they could kill you if used incorrectly.
A year and a half ago, I underwent an internal defibrillation. Cardioversion.
Quite Shocking. Literally.
Physiologically this makes perfect sense. Chest-to-back current path is through the heart. Chest-to-side current path goes over the anterior portion of the heart and does not do a good job of interrupting the fibrillation so that the heart’s electrical system can return to a normal rhythm. It’s past time somebody figured this out.
I was wondering about that, too. A little further to travel but should still go thru the heart.
Don't know for sure, as I suspect the lungs would act as a pair of capacitors in series thus flattening the curve. But to compensate for that might only require an adjustment in settings. I would think that could be established on cadavers fairly quickly.
Hey, might work even better. If the first jolt doesn’t work just hit the guy in the chest with your fist to discharge the capacitors.
Some of my wife's patients needing defibrillation weigh about half a kilogram. Some are too damaged to roll over.
What made you believe that what you see on mass media is always true? Better to read the technical literature on defibrillation than ponder what was presented to you on digital media.
Freegards.
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