The periodic beating of the heart is controlled by electrical impulses that originate within the cardiac muscle itself. These pulses travel to the sinoatrial node and from there to the atria and the ventricles, causing the cardiac muscles to contract. If a current of a few hundred milliamperes passes through the heart, it will interfere with this natural system, and may cause the heart to beat erratically. This condition is known as ventricular fibrillation, and is life-threatening. If, however, a larger current of about 5 to 6 amps is passed through the heart, a sustained ventricular contraction will occur. The cardiac muscle cannot relax, and the heart stops beating. If at this point the muscle is allowed to relax, a regular heartbeat will usually resume.
The large current required to stop the heart is supplied by a device known as a defibrillator. A schematic diagram of a defibrillator is shown below. This device is essentially a “heavy-duty” capacitor capable of storing large amounts of energy. To charge the capacitor quickly (in 1 to 3 seconds), a large DC voltage must be applied to the plates of the capacitor. This is achieved using a step-up transformer, which creates an output voltage that is much larger than the input voltage. The transformer used in this defibrillator has a step-up ratio of 1:50.
The AC voltage that is obtained from the transformer must then be converted to DC voltage in order to charge the capacitor. This is accomplished using a diode, which allows current flow in one direction only. Once the capacitor is fully charged, the charge remains stored until the switch is moved to position B and the plates are placed on the patient’s chest. To cut down the resistance between the patient’s body and the defibrillator, the electrodes are covered with a wetting gel before use. Care must be taken to insure that the patient is not in electrical contact with the ground while the defibrillator is in use.
The resistance between the two electrodes when placed apart on the patient’s chest is 1,000 Ω when wetting gel is used. What is the initial current through the patient’s heart, assuming that all the current takes this path?
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0.16 A
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4 A
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6.25 A
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8 A
