Defibrillation is a medical technique that involves sending a precise electrical shock to the heart to end a fatal arrhythmia or cardiac arrest. The semi-automatic defibrillator (AED) is a device capable of automatically detecting the victim's heart rhythm and assessing whether a shock is required. If you are witnessing cardiac arrest, you can follow these simple instructions to use an AED and save the victim's life.
Steps
Part 1 of 2: Preparation
Step 1. Check for cardiac arrest
If you see a person experiencing an emergency, you need to make sure their heart has stopped before using an AED. Check that the victim is unable to respond, to breathe and that there is no heartbeat; you can use the ABC method for this verification. If you don't feel your heartbeat or don't notice any signs of breathing, you need to start cardiopulmonary resuscitation.
- TOirway (airways): make sure they are open before checking your breathing. To do this, tilt the person's head backward by lifting them by the chin; if you notice an object obstructing them, remove it.
- B.reathing (breathing): lean close to the victim to hear the breathing noise; see if the chest rises and falls.
- C.irculation (circulation): find the pulse. The signs of circulatory problems are discolouration of the skin, sweating and reduced level of consciousness.
Step 2. Try to wake the victim
If you run into a person and don't know how long they have been unconscious, you need to make sure they are really in trouble and not just sleeping. Try to wake her up, shake her, shout near her ear or clap your hands; if he shows no signs of recovery, he finds confirmation of cardiac arrest.
Never shake a child or baby, as this could cause serious damage
Step 3. Call 118
As soon as you are certain that the individual is experiencing a medical emergency, you should call for help. Explain to the operator where you are and what is happening; inform them that you have a semi-automatic defibrillator and plan to use it.
If there is another witness besides you, tell him to call 911 while you begin assisting the victim; he should also go and get the AED. In this way, everything happens faster and timeliness is essential in cases of cardiac arrest
Step 4. Cardiopulmonary resuscitation begins
If you are not alone, you should begin the procedure while the other person retrieves the AED; if you are alone, call 911 and then start resuscitation.
- Perform 30 chest compressions and 2 artificial breaths; the latter should not last more than a second each; avoid hyperventilating and only provide enough air to dilate the victim's chest.
- Maintain a pace of 100 compressions per minute without ever going beyond 125. You should apply enough pressure to drop the sternum 5 cm down and wait for it to return to its natural position with as few interruptions as possible.
- If you don't know how long the victim has been unconscious, you should start CPR immediately and use the AED afterwards.
Part 2 of 2: Using the AED
Step 1. Make sure the victim is dry
Before turning on and using the defibrillator, you must be sure that the person you want to help is not wet; in this case, you need to dry it. If there is water in the immediate vicinity, you need to transfer the victim to a dry place.
Water conducts electricity; if the patient is wet or there is water nearby, he could suffer severe trauma
Step 2. Turn on the AED
When you are sure there are no traces of moisture, you can operate the device; once activated, the defibrillator provides instructions to handle the situation. Probably, it tells you to connect the sensor cables to the machine, which typically need to be hooked over the flashing light located at the top of the device.
The tool then prompts you to prepare the person after inserting the cables
Step 3. Prepare the chest
To use the sensors of an AED, you need to remove some objects from the victim's body. Open or cut his shirt; if the chest is very hairy, you need to shave it. You should also check for signs that make you suspect that the person has undergone surgery to implant a heart device, such as a pacemaker. If you notice any jewelry or metal accessories, remove them, as metal conducts electricity.
- Most AED kits come with a razor or scissors to cut the person's hair.
- You should be able to notice the presence of a pacemaker or other implant simply by looking at the chest; typically, these patients also wear a medical bracelet.
- If the victim is a woman, you need to remove her underwire bra, as it could conduct electricity, just like jewelry.
Step 4. Apply the sensors
The automatic defibrillator electrodes are usually attached to adhesive patches; the instrument tells you to put them in position. You need to make sure that they are placed correctly on the victim's chest so that they receive all the intensity of the electric shock they need. An electrode should be placed under the collarbone in the upper right corner of the bare chest; the other must be fixed under the left breast, under the heart and slightly towards the side.
- Check that there is no fabric or other objects between the sensor and the skin; any obstacle could cause malfunctions in the device.
- If the pads are not properly attached, the AED may repeatedly display the 'check pads' message.
- If you find an implanted device or piercing, you need to attach the sensors at least 2-3 cm from these items.
Step 5. Let the tool analyze the victim's vital signs
When the sensors are placed in the right way, you have to make sure that all people move away from the victim. Afterwards, you can press the analysis button located on the defibrillator; this allows you to activate the instrument, which begins to check the heart rhythm.
- The AED then tells you if you need to send an electric shock or if you need to continue with cardiopulmonary resuscitation; if no shock is needed, it means that the heart has started beating again or is following a rhythm that should not be subjected to shock.
- If the electrical shock is not needed, CPR continues until help arrives.
Step 6. Send an electric shock to the person if necessary
If the AED has detected the ideal conditions for an electric shock, you need to make sure once again that the people present move away. Afterwards, you can press the shock button located on the machine; in this way, you send an electric shock through the electrodes, which should help the heart to resume its activity.
The AED delivers only one shock at a time; it doesn't last long, but expect the person's body to move violently
Step 7. Continue doing CPR
When you have sent the shock to the victim, you must continue resuscitation for another two minutes before checking the heart rhythm again with the AED. Keep repeating this sequence until help arrives.
- You should stop when the victim starts breathing on their own again or becomes conscious.
- The AED warns you when two minutes have elapsed and gives you the Stop Resuscitation message.
Advice
- If the AED fails to analyze vital signs and shocks the victim, someone will need to continue CPR to avoid damage to the heart.
- Professional training is strongly recommended. You can consult the website of the Red Cross or the Civil Protection to find out when courses are organized in your area; there are specific courses for the use of automatic defibrillators that teach all participants to use the basic models. There is no way to practice with a true automatic defibrillator; however, it is possible to practice exercises during the course.
- Do not use alcohol wipes to clean the victim's chest before attaching the sensors.
