The heart is one of the most important organs for us to survive. When the heart stops pumping blood to the body and no effective treatment in the golden rescue time, we will face terrible death. Cardiac arrest is so terrible and sudden that we have to pay attention to the existence of AED. The first shock of an automatic external defibrillator (AED) combined with standard cardiopulmonary resuscitation is considered to be the only effective treatment for sudden cardiac arrest (SCA). Along with CPR, the survival rate of AED equipment in rescuing patients with cardiac arrest will be significantly improved when the AED shock is delivered within minutes.
AED equipment is a medical instrument that can automatically analyze the heart rhythm and deliver an electric shock to restore the heart rhythm. Automatic external defibrillators can be divided into semi-automatic and full-automatic AEDs. When the device is on and the AED replacement pads are applied, the machine will analyze the patient’s abnormal heart rate and inform the user whether an AED shock is required. A semi-automatic AED has a shock button for the operator to press after the voice prompt of shock, while the fully automated AED will automatically deliver an AED shock to the patient after a shock command. The most valuable feature of an AED equipment is that the user does not need a professional background to work with an AED. However, training is recommended because AED machines are placed in public spaces with wall mounting brackets.
However, to buy defibrillators for home sees its necessary in recent years with the increasing probability of cardiac arrest at home. Let us take a look at some of the reasons for buying an AED equipment for home.
There is a high risk of cardiac arrest at home.
None of us would like to see people around us leave us forever because of cardiac arrest, but it is a sudden and unexpected thing. The Centers for Disease Control and the American Heart Association have reported that about 350,000 sudden cardiac arrests (SCA) occur outside hospitals each year, and about 7 in 10 of those happen at home[1].
The terrible thing is that the vast majority of people who experience sudden cardiac arrest at home do not get the immediate help they need (defibrillation and cardiopulmonary resuscitation) to improve their survival rate before the emergency personnel arrives. In this case, buy a defibrillator for home to implement timely rescue coming to make sense.
Cardiac arrest can happen to anyone.
Some people will take it for granted that they are healthy enough, and the probability of sudden cardiac arrest is still far away from them. However, the truth is that sudden cardiac arrest can happen to anyone of any age, not limited to the elderly. It is reported that more than 5000 children die of sudden cardiac arrest every year without any warning [2]. Still, survivors of a heart attack are 4 to 6 times more likely to have SCA than the general population.
Sudden cardiac arrest is often confused with a heart attack or myocardial infarction (MI). A MI is a blockage of blood vessels in the coronary arteries hindering the normal blood flow, which leads to cardiac muscle death. SCA, on the other hand, is an electrical failure of the heart to effectively pump blood, leading to abnormal heart rhythms, unconsciousness, and absent or abnormal breathing.
For those families with older people or a history of heart disease, it is highly recommended to install life-saving AED equipment at home.
Rescue in prime time.
Response time is significant for rescue. If short of oxygen for only four minutes, brain cells die, and the heart muscle is damaged. The truth is that for each minute of the AED shock delay, SCA victims’ survival rate decreases by 7-10% [3]. An initial electric shock from an automatic external defibrillator (AED) in conjunction with standard CPR is the only effective treatment for SCA. However, it can easily take up to 10 minutes between paramedics’ arrival to recognize cardiac arrest and deliver AED shock.
For some people, this is a complicated possibility to operate. However, without the assistance of any access to defibrillators, casualties experiencing cardiac arrest in their homes or at other places would have a very slim chance of survival. Thereby, it raises the importance of buying defibrillators for home and taking part in AED courses.
SCA is on the rise during the COVID-19 pandemic.
A study from a team led by Dr. Enrico Baldi in Italy showed that there was a 58% jump in the number of cardiac arrests that occurred before victims could get to the hospital from Feb. 21 and March 31, 2020. It also reported that the incidence of cardiac arrest at home was 7.3 percentage points higher. What makes it frustrating is that EMS employees spend an average of 3 minutes more arriving at the scene of cardiac arrest than in 2019[4]. This can be a consideration in buying a defibrillator for home.
Defibrillators are not as intimidating as people think.
People also think that AED devices are challenging to use. The truth is that most modern AEDs are designed so that anyone can pick them up and use them following the voice prompts or picture guidance (Some AEDs will have, such as Mindray’s). The best chances of survival are actually with high-quality CPR and defibrillators. Moreover, the AED price is now much more budget-friendly for a large number of families, so buying an AED for home is essential.
Conclusion
Now that you have realized the importance of having AED equipment at home, you also need to find a reliable AED brand. Usually, the best AEDs are mostly manufactured and sold in accordance with CE approved guidelines or other authoritative departments. Therefore, it is wise of you to choose an AED brand, for example Mindray, approved by the CE. Mindray is one of the best AED companies with reliable and durable AED devices available. Since its establishment, it has won the favor and trust of various large organizations at home and abroad with its professional and reliability in the field of AED. So far, the AED solutions they provided have been more and more perfect. If you are in demand for buying defibrillators for home or your organizations, Mindray is the right choice you can trust.
References:
[1] About Cardiac Arrest. Available at: https://www.heart.org/en/health-topics/cardiac-arrest/about-cardiac-arrest (Accessed: 22 March 2021)
[2] Sudden Cardiac Arrest. Available at: https://www.chop.edu/conditions-diseases/sudden-cardiac-arrest (Accessed: 22 March 2021)
[3] Survival after Application of Automatic External Defibrillators before Arrival of the Emergency Medical System. Journal of the American College of Cardiology Volume 55, Issue 16, 20 April 2010, Pages 1713-1720. Available at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3008654/ (Accessed: 22 March 2021)
[4] Cardiac Arrests On the Rise During COVID-19 Crisis. Available at: https://www.webmd.com/lung/news/20200430/cardiac-arrests-on-the-rise-during-covid-19-crisis#1 (Accessed: 22 March 2021)