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Updated: Jul 28, 2026
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A New Single Chamber Implantable Defibrillator with Atrial Sensing: A Practical Demonstration of Sensing and Ease of Implantation
Published on: February 28, 2012
Evidence-based guidelines for the use of defibrillation pads
N E Drury1, G W Petley, F Clewlow
1Shackleton Department of Anaesthetics, Southampton University Hospitals NHS Trust, SO16 6YD, Southampton, UK.
Resuscitation
|December 12, 2001
Summary
Defibrillation pads can be used for up to 30 minutes without significant performance loss. The electrical current from defibrillation does not accelerate pad evaporation or water loss.
Area of Science:
- Medical Devices
- Cardiology
- Emergency Medicine
Background:
- Defibrillation pads are crucial for cardiac arrest and cardioversion.
- Current guidelines lack evidence-based recommendations for pad replacement frequency.
- Pad mass diminishes with air exposure due to evaporation, potentially affecting conduction.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate if defibrillation current accelerates pad evaporation.
- To establish evidence-based guidelines for defibrillation pad replacement.
Main Methods:
- Collected 3M defibrillation pads (2346N) from UK hospitals over 2 months.
- Recorded pad exposure time, shock energy, and procedure type.
- Measured pad mass to calculate evaporative mass loss.
Main Results:
- Analyzed 26 pad pairs from 14 cardiac arrests and 12 cardioversions.
- Evaporation rates were similar with or without defibrillation current (86.1 vs. 99.4 mg/min).
- Pads exposed <30 min showed no significant increase in transthoracic impedance (TTI); pads >30 min did.
Conclusions:
- Defibrillation pads are effective for up to 30 minutes without clinically significant TTI increase.
- Defibrillation current does not accelerate water loss from pads.
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