Salad Spoons in the OR

[George K]

The blueish structure, beating away furiously, on the right, is the right atrium. Looks like it's going at about 300 bpm, which is typical for a-flutter. Because of the rapidity of the beat, only some (usually ¼) beats gets transmitted down to the ventricle (on the left), giving an effective heart rate of about 75. The fibers that transmit the signal down from the atrium are still in there "refractory period" and they can't conduct the impulse.

It's unusual to see atrial flutter during heart surgery. What we usually saw. as we warmed the patient, was ventricular fibrillation. 9/10 times one shock with the salad spoons paddles, would bring it into normal rhythm.

[Axtremus]

Nice!
Didn‘t click into the tweet. I suspect I heard Indian accent … was the video shot in an Indian OR?

[Jolly]

Funny you should post this...

Had one my more favorite docs walk into the lab on Saturday. Guy is in his 70's, former triathlete, former general surgeon, does ER work now. Looks like an eagle with the surgeon Type A personality.

Needed a favor, an off-books D -Dimer, cardiacs and a blue plate special. He woke up that morning in A-fib, called a cardiologist friend and now he just wanted to make sure he didn't have a clot before starting on some Cardizem.

Hope it works for him.