What is an AED and how does it work?
An Automated External Defibrillator or AED is a portable, battery operated electronic device about the size of a laptop computer. The AED automatically diagnoses the potentially life threatening cardiac arrhythmias of ventricular fibrillation and ventricular tachycardia in a victim and is able to treat the patient by an electrical shock which stops the arrhythmia, allowing the heart to re-establish an effective rhythm. AEDs are designed to be simple so that anyone can use one. So simple that I often start my classes by selecting someone from the class that has never seen an AED and I ask them to demonstrate how to use an AED by following the AEDs voice instructions. To date, the youngest person to effectively demonstrate the AED in one of my classes was 9 years old. Why should I buy an AED? In June of 2009 Michael Jackson died from Sudden Cardiac Arrest in June of 2008 Tim Russert of NBC’s Meet The Press also died from Sudden Cardiac Arrest. According to the American Heart Association,
