Cardiac arrest is defined as the termination of cardiac activity associated with loss of consciousness, of spontaneous breathing, and of circulation. Sudden cardiac arrest and sudden cardiac death (SCD) are terms often used interchangeably. Most patients with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest have shown coronary artery disease or symptoms during the hour before the event. Cardiac arrest is potentially reversible by cardiopulmonary resuscitation, defibrillation, cardioversion, cardiac pacing, or treatments targeted at the underlying disease (e.g., acute coronary occlusion). We restrict SCD hereafter to cardiac arrest due to ventricular fibrillation, including rhythms shockable by an automatic external defibrillator (AED), implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD), or wearable cardioverter-defibrillator (WCD). We summarize the state of the art related to defibrillation in treating SCD, including a brief history of the evolution of defibrillation, technical characteristics of modern AEDs, strategies to improve AED access and increase survival, ancillary treatments, and use of ICDs or WCDs.

中文翻译：

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心室颤动的除颤

心脏骤停被定义为与意识丧失、自主呼吸和循环相关的心脏活动终止。心脏骤停和心源性猝死 (SCD) 是经常互换使用的术语。大多数院外心脏骤停患者在事件发生前一小时内已表现出冠状动脉疾病或症状。通过心肺复苏、除颤、心脏复律、心脏起搏或针对潜在疾病（例如急性冠状动脉闭塞）的治疗，心脏骤停可能是可逆的。我们此后将 SCD 限制为由心室颤动引起的心脏骤停，包括可通过自动体外除颤器 (AED)、植入式心律转复除颤器 (ICD) 或可穿戴式心律转复除颤器 (WCD) 电击的心律。