DEFIBRILLATION
MONOPHASIC AND BIPHASIC
DEFIBRILLATION AND ELECTRICITY
The Heart’s Electrical System
The heart muscle, or myocardium, is a mass of muscle cells. Some of thesecells (“working” cells) are specialized for contracting, which causes the pumping action of the heart. Other cells (“electrical system” cells) are specialized for conduction. They conduct the electrical impulses throughout the heart and allow it to pump in an organized and productive manner. All of the electrical activity in the heart is initiated in specialized muscle cells called “pacemaker” cells, which spontaneously initiate electrical impulses that are conducted through pathways in the heart made up of electrical system cells. Although autonomic nerves surround the heart and can influence the rate or strength of the heart’s contractions, it is the pacemaker cells, and not the autonomic nerves, that initiate the electrical impulses that cause the heart to contract.
The heart muscle, or myocardium, is a mass of muscle cells. Some of thesecells (“working” cells) are specialized for contracting, which causes the pumping action of the heart. Other cells (“electrical system” cells) are specialized for conduction. They conduct the electrical impulses throughout the heart and allow it to pump in an organized and productive manner. All of the electrical activity in the heart is initiated in specialized muscle cells called “pacemaker” cells, which spontaneously initiate electrical impulses that are conducted through pathways in the heart made up of electrical system cells. Although autonomic nerves surround the heart and can influence the rate or strength of the heart’s contractions, it is the pacemaker cells, and not the autonomic nerves, that initiate the electrical impulses that cause the heart to contract.
The heart is made up of four chambers, two smaller, upper
chambers called the atria, and two larger, lower chambers called the
ventricles. The right atrium collects blood returning from the body and pumps
it into the right ventricle. The right ventricle then pumps that blood into the
lungs to be oxygenated. The left atrium collects the blood coming back from the
lungs and pumps it into the left ventricle. Finally, the left ventricle pumps
the oxygenated blood to the body, and the cycle starts over again.
The electrocardiogram (ECG) measures the heart's electrical
activity by monitoring the small signals from the heart that are conducted to
the surface of the patient’s chest. The ECG indicates whether or not the heart
is conducting the electrical impulses properly, which results in pumping blood throughout
the body. In a healthy heart, the electrical impulse begins at the sinus node,
travels down (propagates) to the A-V node, causing the atria to contract, and
then travels down the left and right bundle branches before spreading out
across the ventricles, causing them to contract in unison. The “normal sinus
rhythm” or NSR (so called because the impulse starts at the sinus node and
follows the normal conduction path) shown below is an example of what the ECG
for a healthy heart looks like.
Normal Sinus Rhythm
Sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) occurs when the heart stops
beating in an organized manner and is unable to pump blood throughout the body.
A person stricken with SCA will lose consciousness and stop breathing within a matter
of seconds. SCA is a disorder of the heart’s electrical conduction pathway that
prevents the heart from contracting in a manner that will effectively pump the
blood.
Although the terms “heart attack” and “sudden cardiac arrest” are sometimes used interchangeably, they are actually two distinct and different conditions. A heart attack, or myocardial infarction (MI), refers to a physical disorder where blood flow is restricted to a certain area of the heart. This can be caused by a coronary artery that is obstructed with plaque and results in an area of tissue that doesn't receive any oxygen. This will eventually cause those cells to die if nothing is done. A heart attack is typically accompanied by pain, shortness of breath, and other symptoms, and is usually treated with drugs or angioplasty. Although sudden death is possible, it does not always occur. Many times, a heart attack will lead to SCA, which does lead to sudden death if no action is taken.
The most common heart rhythm in SCA is ventricular fibrillation (VF). VF refers to a condition that can develop when the working cells stop responding to the electrical system in the heart and start contracting randomly on their own.
Although the terms “heart attack” and “sudden cardiac arrest” are sometimes used interchangeably, they are actually two distinct and different conditions. A heart attack, or myocardial infarction (MI), refers to a physical disorder where blood flow is restricted to a certain area of the heart. This can be caused by a coronary artery that is obstructed with plaque and results in an area of tissue that doesn't receive any oxygen. This will eventually cause those cells to die if nothing is done. A heart attack is typically accompanied by pain, shortness of breath, and other symptoms, and is usually treated with drugs or angioplasty. Although sudden death is possible, it does not always occur. Many times, a heart attack will lead to SCA, which does lead to sudden death if no action is taken.
The most common heart rhythm in SCA is ventricular fibrillation (VF). VF refers to a condition that can develop when the working cells stop responding to the electrical system in the heart and start contracting randomly on their own.
When this occurs, the heart becomes a quivering mass of
muscle and loses its ability to pump blood through the body. The heart “stops
beating”, and the person will lose consciousness and stop breathing within
seconds. If defibrillation is not successfully performed to return the heart to
a productive rhythm, the person will die within minutes. The ECG below depicts
ventricular fibrillation
Ventricular Fibrillation
Cardiopulmonary resuscitation, or CPR, allows some oxygen to
be delivered to the various body organs (including the heart), but at a
much-reduced rate. CPR will not stop fibrillation. However, because it allows
some oxygen to be supplied to the heart tissue, CPR extends the length of time
during which defibrillation is still possible. Even with CPR, a fibrillating
heart rhythm will eventually degenerate into asystole, or “flatline,” which is
the absence of any electrical activity. If this happens, the patient has almost
no chance of survival.
Defibrillation is the use of an electrical shock to stop fibrillation and allow the heart to return to a regular, productive rhythm that leads to pumping action. The shock is intended to cause the majority of the working cells to contract (or “depolarize”) simultaneously. This allows them to start responding to the natural electrical system in the heart and begin beating in an organized manner again. The chance of survival decreases by about 10% for every minute the heart remains in fibrillation, so defibrillating someone as quickly as possible is vital to survival.
An electrical shock is delivered by a defibrillator, and involves placing two electrodes on a person's chest in such a way that an electrical current travels from one pad to the other, passing through the heart muscle along the way. Since the electrodes typically are placed on the patient's chest, the current must pass through the skin, chest muscles, ribs, and organs in the area of the chest cavity, in addition to the heart. A person will sometimes “jump” when a shock is delivered, because the same current that causes all the working cells in the heart to contract can also cause the muscles in the chest to contract.
Defibrillation is the use of an electrical shock to stop fibrillation and allow the heart to return to a regular, productive rhythm that leads to pumping action. The shock is intended to cause the majority of the working cells to contract (or “depolarize”) simultaneously. This allows them to start responding to the natural electrical system in the heart and begin beating in an organized manner again. The chance of survival decreases by about 10% for every minute the heart remains in fibrillation, so defibrillating someone as quickly as possible is vital to survival.
An electrical shock is delivered by a defibrillator, and involves placing two electrodes on a person's chest in such a way that an electrical current travels from one pad to the other, passing through the heart muscle along the way. Since the electrodes typically are placed on the patient's chest, the current must pass through the skin, chest muscles, ribs, and organs in the area of the chest cavity, in addition to the heart. A person will sometimes “jump” when a shock is delivered, because the same current that causes all the working cells in the heart to contract can also cause the muscles in the chest to contract.
MONOPHASIC
AND BIPHASIC DEFIBRILLATION
The basic difference between monophasic and biphasic
waveforms is the direction of current flow between the defibrillation pads.
With a monophasic waveform, the current flows in only one direction. With a
biphasic waveform, the current flows in
one direction and then reverses and flows in the opposite direction. Looking at the waveforms, a monophasic waveform has one positive pulse, whereas a biphasic starts with a positive pulse that is followed by a negative one. In the process of developing the biphasic truncated exponential waveform for use in AEDs, valuable lessons have been learned:
1. Not all waveforms are equally effective. How the energy is delivered (the waveform used) is actually more important than how much energy is delivered.
2. Compensation is needed in the waveform to adjust for differing patient impedances because the effectiveness of the waveform may be affected by patient impedance. The patient impedance can vary due to the energy delivered, electrode size, quality of contact between the electrodes and the skin, number and time interval between previous shocks, phase of ventilation, and the size of the chest.
3. Lower energy is better for the patient because it reduces post-shock dysfunction. While this is not a new idea, it has become increasingly clear as more studies have been published.
The characteristics for the monophasic damped sine and monophasic truncated exponential waveforms are specified in the AAMI standard DF2-1989; the result is that these waveforms are very similar from one manufacturer to the next. There is no standard for biphasic waveforms, each manufacturer has designed their own. This has resulted in various wave-shapes depending on the design approach used. While it is generally agreed that biphasic waveforms are better than the traditional monophasic waveforms, it is also true that different levels of energy are required by different biphasic waveforms in order to be effective.
one direction and then reverses and flows in the opposite direction. Looking at the waveforms, a monophasic waveform has one positive pulse, whereas a biphasic starts with a positive pulse that is followed by a negative one. In the process of developing the biphasic truncated exponential waveform for use in AEDs, valuable lessons have been learned:
1. Not all waveforms are equally effective. How the energy is delivered (the waveform used) is actually more important than how much energy is delivered.
2. Compensation is needed in the waveform to adjust for differing patient impedances because the effectiveness of the waveform may be affected by patient impedance. The patient impedance can vary due to the energy delivered, electrode size, quality of contact between the electrodes and the skin, number and time interval between previous shocks, phase of ventilation, and the size of the chest.
3. Lower energy is better for the patient because it reduces post-shock dysfunction. While this is not a new idea, it has become increasingly clear as more studies have been published.
The characteristics for the monophasic damped sine and monophasic truncated exponential waveforms are specified in the AAMI standard DF2-1989; the result is that these waveforms are very similar from one manufacturer to the next. There is no standard for biphasic waveforms, each manufacturer has designed their own. This has resulted in various wave-shapes depending on the design approach used. While it is generally agreed that biphasic waveforms are better than the traditional monophasic waveforms, it is also true that different levels of energy are required by different biphasic waveforms in order to be effective.
