Post created by Sasha and Liana
No matter what medical show we watch there is always the classic scene: A patient flatlines and doctors use a defibrillator to jolt the patient back to life. Although the scenario is dramatic and keeps everyone at the edge of their seat, defibrillators are not the saving grace between life and death.
The heart’s electrical system controls its ability to pump blood through the body. When the system becomes irregular, a defibrillator may be needed to return a patient’s heart back to normal electrical function. However, for this shock to work, there must be existing electrical activity.
In the very first episode of Grey’s Anatomy, a patient has a seizure and soon flatlines. The nurses call a code blue as the ECG shows a flat line. This is called asystole when there is an absence of electrical activity in the heart muscles. There is little chance to come back from a flatline but popular medical tv shows have convinced watchers that people come back from asystole regularly.
In a correctly functioning heart, action potentials are created by the transfer of electrolytes in and out of cells. When a charge is high enough, the heart nodes will send out a shock known as depolarization. When someone is in asystole, there is an imbalance in electrolytes and the heart can’t generate a shock to pump. Sending an electrical shock through the heart will not change this state but Grey's Anatomy, and other medical dramas, are increasingly adding to the myth that death can be easily escaped with a handy defibrillator.
Comments