An AED (automated external defibrillator) is a computerized device used by emergency medical crews to attempt resuscitation of a victim of cardiac arrest.

Until a number of years ago these machines were only seen in formal medical settings, but in the last number of years as technological advancements have been made, and electronic miniaturization has impacted every facet of our daily lives, they are now able to be used by non-medical lay people. This is a great medical and electronic achievement, and a very positive step in the direction of saving lives in an area that to date left few victims alive to tell their harrowing stories.

AED's have become extremely accurate and simple to use. Although formal training is recommended, it is not necessarily essential, as is evidenced by the burgeoning placement of AED's in the home setting. Philips is the only company currently that has a defibrillator you can buy "over the counter", as it does not require a prescription.

There are quite a number of different AEDs on the market, most of which do require a prescription. They are manufactured and sold under guidelines set down by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The more complex and costly devices are used by medical emergency crews and in hospital or medical settings, however all AED's are designed to carry out basically the same function -- re-starting the heart.

It used to be that an AED operator needed to know how to recognize the signs of sudden cardiac arrest in order to determine if defibrillation was indeed necessary. Fortunately, this is no longer the case as the more modern AED, being computerized, is able to assess the need for defibrillation before the operator proceeds. Most modern AED's use text messages, voice prompts, lights, or all three, to "tell" the operator the correct steps to take and in which order to take them.

So who needs one? Well, first on the list would be known heart disease sufferers with a propensity toward cardiac arrest; second would be those people that simply have a known heart disease or defect; third, would be the rest of us.

Even children can suffer sudden cardiac arrest, and they can be treated using defibrillation in such an event. The American Heart Association does recommend that children under the age of eight be treated using attenuated pads, or paddles, which basically means that less voltage is delivered to the heart of the young child.

Because sudden cardiac arrest occurs without warning, and without much in the way of symptoms; because it can afflict anyone; and because the survival rate of SCA victims (around only 5%) is so abysmal, the placement of AED's in public places, such as libraries, gated communities, office buildings, shopping malls, etc, is a very positive development. There is a program: PAD (public access to defibrillation), underway in some areas to increase AED placement many fold.

Due to the high mortality rate of sudden cardiac arrest, and because increasing numbers of people die from it every year (over 250,000 alone in the US last year), the new home-use AED's offer a brilliant ray of hope in what has been, until recently, a very dark war. With the new breed of AED's currently available, there is no reason why many more lives can't be saved each year.

From mortality rates of around 95% in victims of SCA who are not defibrillated within several minutes of suffering sudden cardiac arrest, these statistics take a nose-dive to around a 5% mortality rate for those who are able to be treated with an AED shortly after the event.

If you or someone you love suffers from any kind of heart ailment consider talking to your Dr. about the AED's available to you. If you do purchase one, it could well turn out to be the best money you ever spent.

You can help the push for Public Access Defibrillation (PAD) by writing to, or sending this article to, your local Congressmen or Congresswoman.