Cardiopulmonary resuscitation
Cardiopulmonary resuscitation: A life-saving emergency procedure that involves breathing for the victim and applying external chest compression to make the heart pump. Abbreviated CPR. In the early stages of a heart attack, death can often be avoided if a bystander starts CPR within 5 minutes of the onset of ventricular fibrillation. When paramedics arrive, medications and/or electrical shock (cardioversion) to the heart can be administered to convert ventricular fibrillation to a normal heart rhythm. Prompt CPR and rapid paramedic response can improve the chances of survival from a heart attack.
Read Also:
- Cardiovascular
Cardiovascular: Relating to the circulatory system, which comprises the heart and blood vessels and carries nutrients and oxygen to the tissues of the body and removes carbon dioxide and other wastes from them. Cardiovascular diseases are conditions that affect the heart and blood vessels and include arteriosclerosis, coronary artery disease, heart valve disease, arrhythmia, heart […]
- Cardiovascular disease
Cardiovascular disease: Disease affecting the heart or blood vessels. Cardiovascular diseases include arteriosclerosis, coronary artery disease, heart valve disease, arrhythmia, heart failure, hypertension, orthostatic hypotension, shock, endocarditis, diseases of the aorta and its branches, disorders of the peripheral vascular system, and congenital heart disease.
- Cardiovascular syncope
Cardiovascular syncope: Sudden collapse into unconsciousness due to a disorder of heart rhythm in which there is a slow or absent pulse resulting in syncope (fainting) with or without convulsions. In this condition, the normal heartbeat passing from the upper chambers of the heart to the lower chambers is interrupted. This results in a condition […]
- Cardiovascular system
Cardiovascular system: The heart and blood vessels. Also known as circulatory system.
- Cardioversion
Cardioversion: The conversion of a cardiac rhythm or electrical pattern to another, generally from an abnormal one to a normal one. Cardioversion can be accomplished by using medications or by electrical shock with a special defibrillator.