AED Training for Victims with Pacemakers

The heart beats because of stimulation from its own pacemaker. A special group of cells, called the sinus node, fires an electric impulse that causes the heart muscle to contract. If the sinus node malfunctions, an artificial pacemaker may be required.

When the heart stops beating, an automatic external defibrillator may be used---by persons properly trained---to shock the heart back into a normal rhythm.

Size

• A pacemaker is about the diameter of a half dollar.

  An artificial pacemaker is approximately 1.75 inches to 2.0 inches in diameter and 0.25 inches thick. They are usually implanted in the left shoulder below the collar bone. Having a pacemaker is not insurance against sudden cardiac death.

Considerations

• Ventricular fibrillation is an uncoordinated, chaotic rhythm.

  CPR instruction is centered around a person that is not breathing and has no pulse, often because of a lethal rhythm called ventricular fibrillation. That is why an automatic external defibrillator---or AED---is used. CPR alone cannot convert ventricular fibrillation: Electrical shock to the heart is required.

Expert Insight

• The only concern for using an AED: returning the heart to a viable rhythm.

  AED training can be done as part of a CPR class or alone. Training is conducted in a range of settings. The American Red Cross, for example, routinely provides training for entire faculties in public and private schools. Many employers ensure that someone on staff is trained to administer AED, and employees are advised of the location of the AED and the person or persons trained to administer it.

  AED training is not conducted for "victims with pacemakers," but for those who may keep persons with pacemakers from becoming victims of a heart attack.

  Training shows a rescuer where the AED patches are placed. The focus is to analyze the rhythm and provide a shock if necessary. The alternative to doing nothing is death.