Automated External Defibrillator (AED)

An automated external defibrillator, or AED, is a portable device used to restore normal heart rhythm to a person in cardiac arrest. The machine consists of a small computer (microprocessor), electrodes, and electric circuitry. Electrodes collect the heart’s rhythm information; the microprocessor interprets the information and then determines if the person needs a defibrillating shock.

The shock is delivered through the person’s chest plate and into the heart by adhesive electrode pads.

What is cardiac arrest?

Cardiac arrest is the abrupt loss of heart function that stops the blood from being pumped throughout the rest of the body. Brain damage or even death can occur within 4-6 minutes of cardiac arrest.

Causes of Cardiac Arrest:

  • Heart attack or severe stress
  • Blockage of heart artery
  • Abnormal or irregular heart beat
  • Respiratory arrest
  • Major injures such as trauma, electrocution, choking, and drowning.

Following cardiac arrest, survival rates drop seven to ten percent every minute that defibrillation is not delivered. Beyond 12 minutes a person only has a two to five percent chance of survival, and ninety-five percent of people that experience cardiac arrest die. Cardiac arrest is one of the leading causes of death in the nation, claiming over 220,000 lives in 2005.

Risks of using an AED include:

  • Electric shock to operator and others around the patient
  • Abnormal heart rate
  • Blood clots
  • Skin burns from electrodes

An AED should not be used on people who have a pulse. Also, it should not be operated where the person cannot be isolated from other people.

Statistics show that cardiac arrest kills an estimated 1,000 people a day, or about one person every two minutes. If a defibrillator is used promptly during the time of cardiac arrest, the person’s chance of survival is 75%, which could dramatically decrease today’s cardiac arrest death rate. The benefits of having a defibrillator in public places influenced government officials in California , Connecticut , Florida , Illinois , Louisiana , Maryland , Montana , New Jersey , and New Mexico to pass mandates requiring selected facilities such as schools, restaurants, and gyms to own an AED.

Devon Health Services, Inc., a National Cost Management Company and the Northeast’s most extensive Preferred Provider Organization (PPO), is committed to offering innovative healthcare technology and products, including AEDs, through its sub-division, Devon Medical.

For more information on cardiac arrest or to purchase an AED, please visit www.devonmedicalsupplies.com and www.devonsuperstore.com