Resuscitation 101: Learn about Defibrillation and CPR
Many people believe that defibrillation and cardiopulmonary resuscitation are competing lifesaving techniques. However, they must be used complementary to one another. Defibrillators and cardiopulmonary resuscitation should not be used in competition, but rather in tandem.
Today, let’s discuss and look into defibrillation and CPR and why these two techniques are important for saving a Sudden Cardiac Arrest (SCA) victim.
Understanding Sudden Cardiac Arrest (SCA) has been defined
Sudden cardiac arrest is a leading cause of death in the United States. Sudden cardiac arrest is a difficult condition to define because it can be caused by a heart attack, an aneurysm, or a stroke. It happens when the electrical activity of the heart changes, causing blood flow to the brain and other vital organs to stop. According to the American Heart Association, approximately 350,000 people die in the United States of America each year as a result of sudden cardiac arrest. The American Red Cross emphasizes the importance of simultaneously performing defibrillation and cardiopulmonary resuscitation.
Increased access to public AEDs has been shown to improve survival rates significantly.
Defining Ventricular Defibrillation
Ventricular fibrillation (VF) is a potentially fatal heart rhythm that can occur as a result of a sudden cardiac arrest.
Because ventricular fibrillation causes unconsciousness and hypotension, an external defibrillator should be used right away.
CPR performed by a bystander or defibrillation with an automated external defibrillator (AED) are immediate emergency care options for cardiac arrest. Implantable devices and medications are used to manage congestive heart failure on a long-term basis.
Critical Techniques for Resuscitation
To have a significant impact on survival, defibrillation must be administered within four minutes of the victim's pulseless collapse (without any intervention). To increase a victim's chances of survival, defibrillation and cardiopulmonary resuscitation should be used in tandem. Defibrillators can help restore normal heart rhythm by administering an electric shock, but CPR must be continued if any blood flow is restored. Defibrillation or cardiopulmonary resuscitation alone will not be enough to resuscitate a victim of a sudden cardiac arrest.
Debunking the Common Misconception
CPR and defibrillation are not mutually exclusive methods of resuscitating a person who has gone into cardiac arrest. True, because effective resuscitation necessitates both defibrillation and cardiopulmonary resuscitation. They should never be substitutes for one another; instead, they should be used together.
The two techniques complement one another because each contributes to saving lives in a different way: one provides oxygen, while the other restores a normal heartbeat to help prevent brain damage. Survival rates have been shown to improve with early defibrillation and cardiopulmonary resuscitation.
Understanding Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR)
CPR is the most basic aspect of emergency care for someone who has gone into cardiac arrest. To manually pump blood throughout the body until paramedics arrive, you press on someone's chest while breathing into their lungs. This improved blood circulation throughout the body could mean the difference between life and death. Defibrillation, or administering an electric shock, may be required in addition to CPR to help restore a normal heart rhythm and proper blood flow throughout the body.
The Fundamentals of Defibrillators
Defibrillators deliver an electric shock to help reset the irregular, chaotic electrical activity of the heart and restore it to a normal pattern, allowing blood flow throughout the body to resume normally. They are frequently used to treat people who have had a sudden cardiac arrest or who are experiencing a cardiac event such as Bradycardia (slow heartbeat). The brain, heart, and other vital organs receive oxygen when the heart is forced to pump blood through the bronchi.
Defibrillation is used when CPR alone is ineffective. Defibrillators help people who have suffered a sudden cardiac arrest recover by resetting their normal rhythm, allowing them to breathe normally again, and reviving their vital organs.
Conclusion
The truth is that a defibrillator is not intended to restore normal heart function. During resuscitation, cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) is used to force the heart to pump blood and thus oxygen to vital organs. Both are required in order to resuscitate an SCA victim.
As life-saving techniques, defibrillation and cardiopulmonary resuscitation are frequently confused and compared. However, these two techniques should be used together during cardiopulmonary resuscitation to improve the chances of survival for victims of sudden cardiac arrest.
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