A device providing performance of CPR without need to exert forces of such magnitude that the patient may be injured, and which further provides performance of defibrillation and ventilation. The CPR assist device according to the present invention is composed generally of an elongate column member, handles mounted normal to the column member, a suction cup member mounted at one end of the column member, and a defibrillation system so that the patient may be defibrillated in conjunction with CPR. According to the method of the present invention, an aid giver places the suction cup member of the CPR assist device on the chest of the patient, then grabs the handles and proceeds to alternately press on the chest and pull from the chest. The suction cup member causes the chest to compress and expand, thereby creating a churning action within the chest cavity that resuscitates the patient. An added benefit of the CPR assist device is that the expansion of the chest cavity as the suction cup member is pulled away from the chest will stimulate lung action of the patient. Defibrillation is provided by the aid giver actuating one or more switches on the column member which supplies electrical stimulation at electrodes mounted to the suction cup member. The defibrillation circuit may operate from household current or may be powered by an internal battery.

A portable self-contained apparatus for delivery of cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) including an arrangement for applying cyclical chest compression and a lung ventilator operatively connected to the chest compression arrangement to deliver volume control ventilation simultaneously with chest compression or asynchronously with chest compression after a predetermined number of compressions. Span adjustment for the thumper accommodates patients with different chest sizes and also adjusts the length of stroke and force of the chest compression thumper as well as the volume of the ventilator output. A ratchet connected to the thumper allows natural expansion of the chest during inhalation by the patient while allowing compression by the apparatus. A control arrangement allows selectively operating the chest compression thumper and the ventilator in a predetermined sequence as well as monitor a patient's vital signs.

A force sensor, for use in combination with an automated electronic defibrillator (AED), includes a first conductive layer. A second conductive layer is spaced apart from the first conductive layer such that no electrical communication occurs between the first and second conductive layers. An electrical communication device is provided for establishing electrical communication between the first and second conductive layers responsive to the application of a force to said electrical communication means. A method of prompting a rescuer in the application of cardiopulmonary resuscitation to a victim includes the steps of: sensing a force applied by the rescuer to the victim's sternum; sensing an interval between successive applications of force to the victim's sternum; comparing the force applied by the rescuer to the victim's sternum to a standard of force known to effect resuscitation; providing a prompt to the rescuer that prompts the rescuer to vary the force delivered to approximate the force that is known to effect resuscitation; comparing the interval between successive applications of force to the victim's sternum to a standard interval known to effect resuscitation; and providing a prompt to the rescuer that prompts the rescuer to vary the interval of force application to approximate the interval that is known to effect resuscitation.

A portable, interactive medical electronic device exemplified by a defibrillator. The device obtains information about a patient's condition, such as ECG and transthoracic impedance data, directly from the patient, and information pertinent to the treatment of the patient indirectly through an operator of the device, and produces a medically appropriate action such as a defibrillation shock in response. Indirect information is obtained through information processing means that includes means for prompting the operator of the device and means for receiving the operator's responses thereto. Prompts may include both questions and instructions, and in one embodiment the information processing means obtains the assent of the operator before causing the defibrillation shock. Indirect information may include information as to whether the patient is conscious, and as to whether or not cardiopulmonary resuscitiation has been performed. The ECG and transthroacic impedance data may be collected through a common pair of electrodes. In one embodiment the device produces an indication that the ECG data is invalid if the transthoracic impedance data indicates excessive motion on the part of the patient. When a difibrillation shock is determined to be medically appropriate, a control signal is produced that causes the charging of an energy storage means and the subsequent discharging of such energy storage means through the patient without further operator intervention. The device also includes a tape recorder for allowing later analysis of the use of the device, and means for holding the tape recorder drive means in a disengaged position until the device is opened for use. The device also includes testing means for enabling a person to test the condition of the device without opening the case in which it is enclosed, means for producing and recording a distinctive sound when and if a defibrillation pulse is delivered, and means for allowing the electrodes to be quickly disconnected so that emergency personnel can conveniently use the electrodes with their own equipment.

An apparatus and method for performing cardio-plumonary resuscitation with active reshaping of a patient's chest are disclosed. A piston positioned near a patient's sternum is intermittently activated to produce cycles of direct compression on the patient's heart while an annular collar is simultaneously placed securely around a patient's thoracic cavity to limit the circumferential changes in the thoracic cavity. The combination of the annular collar and piston combine to direct blood flow both by direct cardiac compression/decompression and by varying the intrathoracic cavity pressure. The annular collar can be formed by a single non-extensible membrane or by a non-extensible outer membrane and an extensible inner membrane with a bladder therebetween filled with a substantially non-compressible fluid. The collar may be attached to the piston and the piston actively driven away from the patient during decompression resulting in an active reshaping of the chest to lower central venous pressure and thereby induce a rapid return of blood to the thoracic cavity.