Ventricular Fibrillation

A potentially lethal cardiac arrhythmia that is characterized by uncoordinated extremely rapid firing of electrical impulses (400-600/min) in HEART VENTRICLES. Such asynchronous ventricular quivering or fibrillation prevents any effective cardiac output and results in unconsciousness (SYNCOPE). It is one of the major electrocardiographic patterns seen with CARDIAC ARREST.

Also Known As:

Networked: 6083 relevant articles (343 outcomes, 556 trials/studies)

Relationship Network

Disease Context: Research Results

Related Diseases

1.	Ventricular Tachycardia
2.	Heart Arrest (Cardiac Arrest)
3.	Myocardial Infarction
4.	Ischemia
5.	Cardiac Arrhythmias (Arrythmia)

Experts

1.	Tang, Wanchun: 55 articles (12/2015 - 04/2002)
2.	Berg, Robert A: 43 articles (09/2015 - 02/2002)
3.	Sun, Shijie: 39 articles (05/2015 - 04/2002)
4.	Kern, Karl B: 38 articles (10/2015 - 02/2002)
5.	Weil, Max Harry: 38 articles (01/2013 - 04/2002)
6.	Chen, Peng-Sheng: 25 articles (10/2015 - 01/2002)
7.	Hilwig, Ronald W: 25 articles (02/2013 - 02/2002)
8.	Wenzel, Volker: 25 articles (09/2012 - 04/2002)
9.	Yannopoulos, Demetris: 23 articles (05/2015 - 04/2004)
10.	Lin, Shien-Fong: 22 articles (10/2015 - 03/2002)

Drugs and Biologics

Drugs and Important Biological Agents (IBA) related to Ventricular Fibrillation:

1.	Amiodarone (Amiodarona)FDA LinkGeneric 04/01/1987 - "Recurrent ventricular fibrillation in a neonate after corrective surgery was effectively treated with intravenous amiodarone in addition to countershock. " 04/01/2010 - "The purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of prophylactic single-dose amiodarone administered through the pump circuit before releasing the aortic cross-clamp (ACC) in preventing the occurrence of reperfusion ventricular fibrillation (RVF). " 12/01/2009 - "The aim of the study was to evaluate the efficacy of the prophylactic administration of 150 mg amiodarone by way of the pump 2 min before release of aortic cross-clamp in preventing ventricular fibrillation. " 06/01/2003 - "A second prospective, randomized clinical trial of amiodarone for refractory ventricular fibrillation has again shown positive results in improving survival to hospital admission. " 03/01/1989 - "Amiodarone therapy eliminated malignant ventricular ectopic activity in this patient during 48 h of ambulatory electrocardiographic monitoring, yet the subsequent exercise stress test provoked an episode of ventricular fibrillation."
2.	Lidocaine (Xylocaine)FDA LinkGeneric 01/01/1982 - "The authors concluded, however, that all the other studies had major defects in trial design, and were prepared to accept the conclusion that lidocaine was effective in preventing primary ventricular fibrillation after myocardial infraction. " 06/01/1979 - "Several investigations into the prophylactic use of lidocaine to prevent the development of arrhythmias have shown that lidocaine, given in therapeutic doses, is effective in preventing ventricular fibrillation and in reducing early mortality. " 01/01/1982 - "One other study did show that lidocaine gave protection against primary ventricular fibrillation (3). " 10/01/2000 - "To determine the efficacy of a bolus of lidocaine administered by way of the pump before releasing the aortic cross-clamp (ACC) in preventing the occurrence of reperfusion ventricular fibrillation. " 08/01/1990 - "Both treatment forms also appear limited by the narrow preventive efficacy of lidocaine against malignant ventricular arrhythmias, especially against ventricular fibrillation. "
3.	Epinephrine (Adrenaline)FDA LinkGeneric 04/01/2011 - "Epinephrine improves 24-hour survival in a swine model of prolonged ventricular fibrillation demonstrating that early intraosseous is superior to delayed intravenous administration." 01/01/2016 - "The purpose of this study was to explore the relationships between the anatomical distance of IO epinephrine injection and measures of resuscitative outcome in an adult swine model of ventricular fibrillation (VF). " 01/01/2016 - "The effects of proximal and distal routes of intraosseous epinephrine administration on short-term resuscitative outcome measures in an adult swine model of ventricular fibrillation: a randomized controlled study." 12/01/2006 - "Experimental and clinical studies have implicated that alpha1- and beta-adrenergic effects of epinephrine significantly increased the severity of postresuscitation myocardial dysfunction by increasing myocardial oxygen consumption during ventricular fibrillation. " 02/01/1998 - "Clinical studies suggest that epinephrine facilitates ventricular fibrillation (VF) although mechanisms remain unclear. "
4.	Propranolol (Inderal)FDA LinkGeneric 07/01/1993 - "Propranolol was extremely effective against ventricular fibrillation. " 02/01/1989 - "Only the lowest dose of propranolol, i.e., 0.1 mg/kg intravenously (i.v.) (plasma level 22 +/- 2 ng/ml) decreased the incidence of ventricular fibrillation (VF), i.e. " 08/01/1982 - "It is suggested that the congenital and acquired forms can be differentiated by pharmacological interventions and that the efficacy of propranolol in the former may result from its ability not only to increase the threshold for ventricular fibrillation, but also its ability to shorten the QT interval." 06/01/1975 - "The combination of propranolol and vagal stimulation also failed to confer protection against ventricular fibrillation. " 12/01/1983 - "Ventricular fibrillation threshold during propranolol withdrawal: an experimental study in dogs."
5.	Sotalol (Sotalol Hydrochloride)FDA LinkGeneric 08/01/1984 - "In a conscious canine model which spontaneously develops ventricular fibrillation, dl-sotalol (2 mg/kg, n = 7; 8 mg/kg, n = 13) decreased the incidence of ventricular fibrillation and increased survival at 24 hr (13 of 20, 65% vs. control, 1 of 15, 7%; P less than .001). " 02/01/1990 - "The aim of this study was to compare the effects of d- and dl-sotalol on the ventricular fibrillation threshold (VFT) and the effective refractory period (VERP) in anaesthetized cats subjected to coronary artery occlusion. " 01/01/2009 - "The effects of d,l-sotalol at therapeutic concentrations (<or=10 mg/L) on wavefront dynamics during ventricular fibrillation (VF) and electrophysiological heterogeneity remain unclear. " 01/01/2009 - "d,l-Sotalol at therapeutic concentrations facilitates the occurrence of long-lasting non-stationary reentry during ventricular fibrillation in isolated rabbit hearts." 10/01/1996 - "The estimated energy (E50) and voltage (V50) for 50% success in defibrillation (estimated from two successive defibrillation "threshold" measurements), ventricular effective refractory period, monophasic action potential duration, and mean cycle length of ventricular fibrillation were measured, along with heart rate, blood pressure, and plasma concentration of d-sotalol. "
6.	Vasopressins (Vasopressin)IBA 08/01/1996 - "This study contributes to the characterization of the effect of increasing global myocardial blood flow on median fibrillation frequency after administration of graded doses of vasopressin in a porcine model of ventricular fibrillation. " 08/01/2004 - "After 4 min of untreated ventricular fibrillation, and 3 min of cardiopulmonary by-pass blood flow, 12 pigs were randomly assigned to receive intravenously, every 5 min, either vasopressin (0.4, 0.4, and 0.8 U/kg; n = 6) or saline placebo (n = 6). " 08/01/1996 - "Using spectral analysis, median frequencies of ventricular fibrillation-before drug administration and 90 secs and 5 mins after drug administration-were as follows in the four groups: 9.6 +/- 0.4, 8.5 +/- 0.8, and 7.2 +/- 1.0 Hz in the control group; 9.7 +/- 0.5, 12.9 +/- 0.8 (p < .01 vs. control group), and 12.7 +/- 0.8 Hz (p < .001 vs. control group) in the group receiving 0.2 U/kg of vasopressin; 10.3 +/- 0.2, 12.7 +/- 0.9 (p < .01 vs. control group), and 12.8 +/- 0.7 Hz (p < .001 vs. control group) in the group receiving 0.4 U/kg of vasopressin; and 10.0 +/- 0.9, 14.1 +/- 0.9 (p < .001 vs. control group), and 12.5 +/- 0.9 Hz (p < .001 vs. control group) in the group receiving 0.8 U/kg of vasopressin at the same points in time. " 06/01/2009 - "After obtaining baseline PET recordings, ventricular fibrillation of 10 min duration was induced, followed by mechanical closed-chest cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) in conjunction with i.v. administration of 0.4 U/kg of vasopressin. " 03/01/2008 - "Ten minutes of untreated ventricular fibrillation, 3 mins of basic life support, and 5 mins of advanced cardiac life support, including two 0.4 IU/kg doses of vasopressin, were followed by up to three countershocks. "
7.	Anti-Arrhythmia AgentsIBA 02/17/2009 - "Our purpose was to evaluate the efficacy of antiarrhythmic drugs (AADs) in recurrent ventricular fibrillation (VF) associated with inferolateral early repolarization pattern on the electrocardiogram. " 02/01/1997 - "1. In the last decade, a number of clinical observations have questioned the efficacy of certain class I antiarrhythmic drugs against ischaemia-induced ventricular fibrillation. " 01/01/2004 - "Thus, in recent years, studies have focused on the roles played by specific ionic mechanisms and their modulation by antiarrhythmic drugs in ventricular fibrillation dynamics. " 08/04/1988 - "Four of 13 patients (31 percent) who underwent multiple trials of antiarrhythmic drugs had recurrent episodes of ventricular fibrillation. " 03/01/1988 - "The purpose of this study was to compare the effects of several different antiarrhythmic drugs on the ventricular fibrillation threshold (VFT). "
8.	Verapamil (Calan)FDA LinkGeneric 09/01/1987 - "In a separate experiment, the ability of an observer to detect ventricular fibrillation (VF) on the basis of changes in behaviour alone was established; (+/- ) verapamil statistically significantly reduced total mortality compared with controls, while (-) verapamil produced a similar, but non-statistically significant reduction. " 07/01/1988 - "Verapamil (0.6 mg/kg i.v.) decreased the incidence of ventricular fibrillation to 0 of 7 versus 22 of 25 in controls (p less than 0.005); left ventricular dP/dtmax decreased from 2,062 +/- 144 to 1,060 +/- 168 mm Hg/sec (p less than 0.0001). " 11/01/2014 - "Verapamil reduces incidence of reentry during ventricular fibrillation in pigs." 07/01/2011 - "The PQRST waves were normalized and atrial and ventricular fibrillation was controlled in rats treated with verapamil and T. " 08/01/2005 - "The second episode was associated with ventricular fibrillation, which was treated with defibrillation and intravenous verapamil. "
9.	OxygenIBA 01/01/2002 - "SBI, SAI, and SBAI each reduced ventricular fibrillation, attenuated increases in systolic and systolic-diastolic [Ca(2+)], improved contractile and relaxation indices, and increased coronary flow, percent oxygen extraction, MvO(2), and cardiac efficiency during 60 min reperfusion compared with CON. " 12/01/1963 - "EXPERIMENTAL STUDY OF THE OXYGEN DIFFERENTIAL THEORY OF VENTRICULAR FIBRILLATION." 01/01/1962 - "Experimental study of the oxygen differential theory of ventricular fibrillation." 04/21/2015 - "Blocking the brain's autonomic outflow significantly delayed terminal ventricular fibrillation and lengthened the duration of detectable cortical activities despite the continued absence of oxygen. " 12/15/2013 - "Stimulation of the cardiac vagus reduces heart rate, lowers myocardial oxygen demand, improves coronary blood flow, and independently raises ventricular fibrillation threshold. "
10.	AconitineIBA 09/01/1967 - "[Studies on aconitine-ventricular fibrillation. " 02/01/1964 - "STUDIES ON ACONITINE-INDUCED VENTRICULAR FIBRILLATION BY SIMULTANEOUS RECORDING OF ELECTROCARDIOGRAMS AND TRANSMEMBRANE POTENTIALS IN SITU." 01/01/2007 - "Aconitine-induced ventricular fibrillation was induced in hearts isolated from adult rats. " 01/01/2001 - "For assessment of the antiarrhythmic activity in anesthetized rats, we infused aconitine until the occurrence of ventricular fibrillation (VF). " 10/29/1993 - "Several compounds in this series increased the threshold for ventricular fibrillation and refractoriness in myocardially-infarcted anesthetized cata and delayed the onset of aconitine-induced arrhythmias in anesthetized guinea pigs following intravenous dosing. "

Therapies and Procedures

1.	Resuscitation 02/01/1975 - "It was also effective in controlling the ventricular dysrhythmias which occurred after resuscitation from ventricular fibrillation. " 08/01/2014 - "In previously reported porcine models of hypoxic and normoxic ventricular fibrillation (VF), a hemodynamic-directed resuscitation improved short-term survival compared to current practice guidelines. " 01/15/2013 - "Using cardiocerebral resuscitation as a model for CQI, neurologically intact survival of patients with OHCA in ventricular fibrillation improved in 2 rural counties in Wisconsin, from 15% to 39%, and in 60 emergency medical systems in Arizona, to 38%. " 08/01/1993 - "The first 2 years of experience with 499 technician-initiated resuscitation attempts in which the mobile intensive care unit of Klinikum Steglitz was involved, confirmed the results of the pilot study with an improved long-term survival rate (18%) for patients with ventricular fibrillation. " 08/01/2014 - "The aim of this study is to examine the effect of rh-EPO in a pig model of ventricular fibrillation (VF)-induced CA. Ventricular fibrillation was electrically induced in 20 piglets and maintained untreated for 8 minutes before attempting resuscitation. "
2.	Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) 10/01/1994 - "Studies in dogs and pigs in ventricular fibrillation have demonstrated a significant improvement in systolic blood pressure, coronary perfusion pressure and total brain and myocardial blood flow with ACD CPR compared with standard CPR. " 07/01/2015 - "Patients with refractory ventricular fibrillation receiving E-CPR had a trend toward higher survival rates and significantly improved neurological outcomes than those receiving C-CPR." 04/01/1991 - "Survival was significantly greater with bystander-witnessed arrest, bystander-initiated CPR, paramedic-witnessed arrest, initial rhythm of ventricular fibrillation, and shorter treatment intervals. " 07/06/2004 - "Recent studies have shown that, after prolonged ventricular fibrillation, the rates of return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC) and survival are improved if defibrillation is delayed so that CPR can be given first. " 11/01/2012 - "Passive leg raising during cardiopulmonary resuscitation results in improved neurological outcome in a swine model of prolonged ventricular fibrillation."
3.	Implantable Defibrillators (Implantable Cardioverter-Defibrillator) 12/01/2010 - "The automatic implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (AICD) is the most effective treatment for patients with life-threatening VT or ventricular fibrillation. " 05/01/2009 - "The automatic implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (AICD) is the most effective treatment for patients with life-threatening VT or ventricular fibrillation. " 03/01/1993 - "The implantable cardioverter defibrillator is an expensive tool with a theoretically wide range of clinical indications, with already proven efficacy in converting ventricular fibrillation to sinus rhythm but with unproven efficacy on prolonging survival because of a lack of controlled trials (which, we must admit, is also true for drugs and surgery). " 10/01/2008 - "The implantable cardioverter defibrillator with an active can and a single coil lead is effective in treating ventricular fibrillation, but the lead placement associated with the high defibrillation efficacy is still controversial and remains largely empirical. " 01/01/1998 - "The efficacy of low-energy T wave shocks for induction of ventricular fibrillation (VF) was evaluated in 33 patients undergoing implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) implantation (33 sessions) or predischarge ICD testing (20 sessions). "
4.	Defibrillators (Defibrillator) 10/26/2000 - "The use of the automated external defibrillator aboard commercial aircraft is effective, with an excellent rate of survival to discharge from the hospital after conversion of ventricular fibrillation. " 01/01/2011 - "[Ventricular fibrillation effectively treated by wearable automatic defibrillator - a case report]." 03/01/1998 - "Accurate recognition and effective treatment of ventricular fibrillation by automated external defibrillators in adolescents." 10/01/2003 - "Clinical efficacy of a wearable defibrillator in acutely terminating episodes of ventricular fibrillation using biphasic shocks." 05/15/1998 - "Clinical efficacy of the wearable cardioverter-defibrillator in acutely terminating episodes of ventricular fibrillation."
5.	Ligation 07/01/1989 - "Early activation block may explain the previously reported reduced incidence of ventricular fibrillation during two-stage ligation." 01/01/2009 - "In the phase 1 study, ventricular fibrillation was induced by ligation of the proximal left coronary artery. " 01/01/1994 - "Sixteen (27%) of the 60 dogs in which the protocol was attempted developed spontaneous ventricular fibrillation 21 min after ligation and were included in the study. " 07/01/2015 - "Anomalous Left Coronary From the Pulmonary Artery Presenting as Ventricular Fibrillation After Persistent Ductus Arteriosus Ligation." 07/01/2013 - "After coronary artery ligation three sheep died of ventricular fibrillation. "