automatic external defibrillator
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defibrillator
[de-fib´rĭ-la″ter]an apparatus used to produce defibrillation by application of brief electroshock to the heart, directly or through electrodes placed on the chest wall.
automatic external defibrillator (AED) a portable defibrillator designed to be automated such that it can be used by persons without substantial medical training who are responding to a cardiac emergency.
automatic implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (AICD) (implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD)) an implantable device that detects sustained ventricular tachycardia or fibrillation and terminates it by a shock or shocks delivered directly to the myocardium, thus preventing sudden cardiac death. Three different types of electrodes may be used: a superior vena cava spring lead, a transvenous bipolar electrode, and a ventricular patch lead. One third of the patients who have had this device implanted have received spontaneous device countershocks. Other reported side effects are similar to those of pacemakers.
Miller-Keane Encyclopedia and Dictionary of Medicine, Nursing, and Allied Health, Seventh Edition. © 2003 by Saunders, an imprint of Elsevier, Inc. All rights reserved.
automatic external defibrillator
Smart defibrillator Cardiology A device designed to monitor the heart's electric activity and, if ventricular fibrillation is identified, deliver an electric shock. See Defibrillator, Ventricular fibrillation.McGraw-Hill Concise Dictionary of Modern Medicine. © 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
au·to·mat·ic ex·ter·nal de·fib·ril·la·tor
(AED) (aw'tō-mat'ik eks-tĕr'năl dē-fib'ri-lā-tŏr)Device used to administer electric shock to arrest fibrillation of the atria or ventricles and restore normal heart rhythm; can be used by technicians without medical training.
Medical Dictionary for the Health Professions and Nursing © Farlex 2012
au·to·mat·ic ex·ter·nal de·fib·ril·la·tor
(AED) (aw'tō-mat'ik eks-tĕr'năl dē-fib'ri-lā-tŏr)Device used to administer electric shock to arrest fibrillation of the atria or ventricles and restore normal heart rhythm; can be used by technicians without medical training.
Medical Dictionary for the Dental Professions © Farlex 2012