Successful external electrical defibrillation in acute myocardial infarction. Report of a case.

V ENTRICULAR fibrillation is the most serious of all arrhythmias. It was first described in 1849 by Ludwig and Hoffa.92 Its presence even for a short interval is usually incompatible with life. With the onset of ventricular fibrillation there is an immediate cessation of circulation with a series of rapid irregular undulations that replace the coordinated contractions of the ventricle. These oscillations become gradually less marked until they cease altogether. Ventricular fibrillation may occur in patients during anesthesia; in cases of drowning and electrocution; in Stokes-Adams attacks; in toxicity states due to drugs such as digitalis, quinidine, and procaine amide; during cardiac catheterization; terminally in ventricular tachyeardia; and in coronary artery