Automatic external defibrillators: lessons from the past, present and future

Coronary artery disease remains the leading cause of death in the United St ates and most developed countries. Many of the victims die from sudden card iac arrests, resulting from dysrhythmias-most commonly ventricular fibrilla tion. Since most cardiac arrests occur outside the hospital, implementing e mergency services in the field will have a great impact on survival. With t he development of the modern automatic external defibrillator (AED), early recognition and correction of these dysrhythmias by lay rescuers can signif icantly improve outcome from sudden death. This paper reviews the past, pre sent and future development and applications of AEDs. (C) 1999 Elsevier Sci ence Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.