Defibrillation is indicated to treat which arrhythmia?

Prepare for the Neonatal/Pediatric Specialist Test. Use flashcards and multiple-choice questions with hints and explanations. Ready yourself for the exam!

Multiple Choice

Defibrillation is indicated to treat which arrhythmia?

Explanation:
Defibrillation targets shockable rhythms where the heart isn’t effectively pumping. The classic shockable rhythms are pulseless ventricular tachycardia and ventricular fibrillation. It is not used for rhythms with a pulse, such as supraventricular tachycardia, nor for non-shockable rhythms like asystole. Among the options, pulseless ventricular tachycardia is the rhythm that is treated with defibrillation because it is a rapid, life-threatening ventricular rhythm that benefits from an unsynchronized shock to reset the cardiac electrical activity. If ventricular tachycardia occurs with a pulse, a synchronized cardioversion (not defibrillation) would typically be used instead.

Defibrillation targets shockable rhythms where the heart isn’t effectively pumping. The classic shockable rhythms are pulseless ventricular tachycardia and ventricular fibrillation. It is not used for rhythms with a pulse, such as supraventricular tachycardia, nor for non-shockable rhythms like asystole. Among the options, pulseless ventricular tachycardia is the rhythm that is treated with defibrillation because it is a rapid, life-threatening ventricular rhythm that benefits from an unsynchronized shock to reset the cardiac electrical activity. If ventricular tachycardia occurs with a pulse, a synchronized cardioversion (not defibrillation) would typically be used instead.

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