A defibrillator, also known as a shock generator or defi in the technical jargon, is a medical device for defibrillation. It can terminate cardiac arrhythmias such as ventricular fibrillation (fibrillation) or ventricular tachycardia through targeted electric shocks.
Since the 1990s, defibrillators in the form of automated external defibrillators (AEDs) have increasingly been made available for use by medical laypersons in publicly accessible buildings such as train stations, airports, businesses, schools, and other locations.
In 85 percent of all sudden circulatory arrests, ventricular fibrillation is initially present. A defibrillator can interrupt this electrically circular excitation in the heart by simultaneously stimulating all the heart muscle cells.
The earliest possible use of defibrillation is crucial, since the undersupply of oxygen to the brain (brain ischemia) caused by ventricular fibrillation can lead to massive neurological deficits within a short time.
