A minimal model of the monophasic defibrillation pulse

A minimal model of the defibrillation capability of a monophasic capacitive discharge pulse is derived from the Weiss-Lapicque strength duration model. The model suggests that present, empirically derived values of pulse durations and tilts are close to optimum for presently used values of capacitors and electrode resistances. The model suggests that neither the tilt nor fixed duration specification is universally superior to the other for dealing with electrode resistance changes. A tilt specification would appear to best handle resistance decreases while a fixed duration specification would best handle resistance increases. The model was used to study the effect of capacitance changes. It appears that the optimum tilt and pulse duration vary with the capacitance value. The model further suggests that decreasing the capacitance from presently used values may lower defibrillation thresholds.