defibrillator

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CPR Almost Always Fails. ECPR Is a Different Story

It's called the biggest advance in cardiac arrest treatment since CPR itself

(Newser) - Dramatic TV rescues notwithstanding, the stark truth is that people who go into cardiac arrest are usually doomed. CPR is almost always futile . Defibrillators can shock a heart back to life, but only if the patient has a "shockable rhythm" to work with, writes physician Helen Ouyang in the...

Few Homes Have Defibrillators. Is It Time to Change That?

Gina Kolata of the 'New York Times' explores the topic, noting price is one big factor

(Newser) - Lots of people would be able to find a fire extinguisher in their house to ward off catastrophe. But a defibrillator? Not so much, notes Gina Kolata in the New York Times . The journalist writes that she ordered one for her own home after reporting about the near-death of the...

They Came In With Paddles to Save Him. A Fireball Erupted

Family says dad died after fireball caused by defibrillator in Nashville hospital

(Newser) - A Tennessee woman says her husband died on Thanksgiving after catching fire in a Nashville hospital, and now his family is speaking out to prevent something like this from happening again. Kathy Stark tells WKRN that earlier this month she had her spouse of 35 years, Bobby Ray, brought to...

A Boy Collapsed on a Soccer Field. His Mom Saved His Life

Teen's mom, a doctor, did CPR until an automated AED arrived

(Newser) - Jose Agredano was on the field for his final JV soccer game of the season earlier this month when his parents, watching from the stands in Watsonville, Calif., noticed something was wrong. They ran to their 16-year-old son, who had been hit by a ball, as he collapsed and stopped...

High-Rise Dwellers More Likely to Die of Heart Attack

In study, not a single person living above the 25th floor survived

(Newser) - As the world's ever-more urban population increasingly lives more than three stories above ground, there may be repercussions for anyone suffering a heart attack at the wrong end of a long elevator ride from the ground floor. Medics and other researchers have analyzed 8,216 cardiac arrests in private...

Teen Helps Save Life of Cop Who Was Booking Him

Jamal Rutledge was being processed when Officer Franklin Foulks collapsed

(Newser) - As Franklin Foulks was processing a teen charged with probation violation for criminal mischief and burglary, the Fort Lauderdale Police Department officer suddenly fell from his chair and, writhing on the floor, grabbed at his chest. The handcuffed teen, 17-year-old Jamal Rutledge, quickly stood up and banged at the door...

Man Denied Defibrillator Over Chest Hair, Says His Widow

Jack Jordan suffered fatal heart attack on Southwest flight

(Newser) - During a Southwest Airlines flight in April, Caroline Jordan's husband, Jack, had a massive heart attack. A physical therapist and hospice nurse on board quickly gave him CPR, she tells WABC . That's when Jordan noticed a defibrillator nearby ... not being used. When another passenger asked why, a flight...

New Use for Drones: Fixing Your Heart

Defikopter would drop defibrillators to heart attack victims

(Newser) - If all goes according to plan, a German nonprofit could soon be introducing a drone that doesn't spy on you—it could save your life. Definetz has proposed a drone, built by Height-Tech, that would carry a defibrillator, Fast Company reports. The 10-pound Defikopter would be meant for remote...

Murder Weapon of the Future: the Smartphone

Phones can disable cars, homes, electrical systems

(Newser) - As we all know, smartphones are terrific tools—but in the wrong hands they can become weapons capable of mass murder, Vanity Fair reports. Terrorists already use them to trigger bombs, but tech-security experts are finding that phones can also shut off pacemakers, make cars crash, hijack houses, exhaust batteries...

Stabbing Victim's Defibrillator Stops Knife

It may have saved life of 57-year-old man

(Newser) - A San Diego man's implanted defibrillator protected his heart in the weirdest way possible: Police say the device stopped a knife during an attack on Thursday, reports NBC San Diego . The 57-year-old victim remains hospitalized with serious injuries after getting stabbed in the chest during an argument, but authorities...

You Heard? Headphones, Pacemakers Don't Jibe

Headsets may interfere with heart devices

(Newser) - Headphones used with digital music players may interfere with pacemakers and internal defibrillators, scientists discovered in research contradicting reports from the US government. “Exposure of a defibrillator to the headphones can temporarily deactivate the defibrillator,” the lead researcher said. Draping the headphones over the chest caused hindrance in...

Family Blames Airline for Woman's Death

American disputes cousin's account of in-flight incident

(Newser) - A woman who died en route from Haiti to New York received assistance from the flight crew and fellow passengers, American Airlines said today, disputing the victim's family's account of the incident. "Don't let me die," Carine Desir's cousin recalls her saying after a flight attendant refused to...

Study: Hospitals Too Slow to Shock Hearts

30% of cardiac arrests receiving care too late

(Newser) - American hospitals are taking too long to revive the hearts of patients who suffer cardiac arrest, a study finds. Electric shock from a defibrillator can restart a stopped heart, but only if it is done quickly. The American Heart Association recommends that patients in cardiac arrest receive treatment within two...

Medtronic Pulls Defibrillator Wires After 5 Deaths

Defective wires may have led to five deaths

(Newser) - Medtronic is halting sales of a wire that connects defibrillators implanted in the chests of cardiac patients to their hearts. The wires have been shown to fracture and deliver an accidental jolt  to the heart, which can be uncomfortable and may have played a role in five deaths. An estimated...

Docs Replace Cheney's Heart Implant
Docs Replace Cheney's
Heart Implant
Jul 29, 2007 8:15 AM CDT

Docs Replace Cheney's Heart Implant

Veep gets go-ahead to return to work after defibrillator gets new battery

(Newser) - Doctors have replaced Dick Cheney's defibrillator "without complication," a spokeswoman for the VP says. A checkup last month revealed that the battery in the 6-year-old cardiac implant was running low, and yesterday doctors performed a routine procedure to swap out the power source without affecting the wires that...

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