Ventricular Fibrillation (V Fib)
Included In This Lesson
Study Tools For Ventricular Fibrillation (V Fib)
Outline
Overview
- Ventricular Fibrillation
- Multiple unorganized electrical signals in the ventricles
- Causing the ventricles to quiver
- Wavy lines
- Heart not able to pump blood out
- Zero cardiac output
- Life threatening emergency
- Cardiac arrest
- Causing the ventricles to quiver
- Multiple unorganized electrical signals in the ventricles
Nursing Points
General
- Characteristics of Ventricular fibrillation
- Rhythm
- Irregular
- Rate
- Not measurable
- P:QRS ratio
- Not measurable
- PR interval
- Not measurable
- QRS complex
- Not measurable
- Rhythm
Assessment
- Patient Presentation
- Cardiac arrest
- Will NEVER have a pulse!
Therapeutic Management
- Nursing Interventions
- CPR
- Follow ACLS guidelines
- CPR
- Defibrillate
- Epinephrine
- Amiodarone
Nursing Concepts
- EKG Rhythms
- Perfusion
Transcript
So in this lesson we are going to talk about ventricular Fibrillation or V-Fib. It is a very important rhythm to understand because patients in V-fib are in cardiac arrest and we need to do something immediately or they will die! When you see this rhythm, they will go asystole if we don’t treat it. So let’s talk about V-fib.
So in ventricular fibrillation the ventricles are quivering and absolutely no cardiac output there is usually no pulse. So since the ventricles are just sitting there quivering, they are not contracting, there is absolutely no cardiac output and no pulse. So CPR must be initiated immediately. This rhythm is very common in patients that are having a heart attack or have severe coronary artery disease. If left untreated, people will go into asystole and just die. Let’s talk about the characteristics for v-fib.
It’s pretty simple to do cause there is not much to it! The rhythm is irregular, remember the heart is erratically quivering, there is no way to measure a heart rate, there are no P waves so there is not a P to QRS ratio, the PR interval is not measurable and you cannot really count the QRS complex. There is no QRS complex since the heart is just quivering it is not measurable. In step 6, it is obviously V-fib. It is one of those rhythms that you need to make a jump for it and you need to prepare to start CPR, bring the defibrillator and call a code.
So people in V-fib have no cardiac output they are in cardiac arrest, they are dying! The priority nursing interventions are to follow the ACLS guidelines, confirm there is not a pulse and start CPR right away. Defibrillate as soon as possible, it is the only chance they have of going into a normal sinus rhythm. Epinephrine every 3-5 minutes and then Amiodarone bolus and drip. However early defibrillation is the best treatment. So as soon as you see this rhythm, you start CPR, call a code, defibrillate them and give meds and hopefully you will bring the patients back.
So the key points to remember from this lesson are the abnormalities regarding Ventricular fibrillation. The ventricles are quivering and fibrillating, there is no cardiac output so the patients in V-fib are in cardiac arrest. Nursing interventions are to follow the ACLS guidelines immediately and start CPR, defibrillate asap and administer medications. This cycle is repeated every 2 minutes or until the code is called and CPR is terminated or hopefully the patient has regained a pulse. V-fib is not one of those rhythms that you wait to see if this is really happening, you need to take action right away!
I hope you guys have enjoyed this quick lesson regarding V-Fib and feel more comfortable knowing what to do when you see this rhythm. Make sure you check out all of the resources attached to this lesson. Now, go out and be your best self today! And, as always, happy nursing!
Katies NCLEX
Concepts Covered:
- Test Taking Strategies
- Medication Administration
- Adult
- Emergency Care of the Cardiac Patient
- Microbiology
- Anxiety Disorders
- Depressive Disorders
- Nervous System
- Gastrointestinal Disorders
- Fundamentals of Emergency Nursing
- Dosage Calculations
- Understanding Society
- Circulatory System
- Concepts of Pharmacology
- Studying
- Newborn Care
- Adulthood Growth and Development
- Respiratory Disorders
- Pregnancy Risks
- Neurological
- Postpartum Complications
- Substance Abuse Disorders
- Bipolar Disorders
- Learning Pharmacology
- Psychotic Disorders
- Prenatal Concepts
- Tissues and Glands
- Factors Influencing Community Health
- Concepts of Population Health
- Community Health Overview
- Developmental Considerations
- Communication
- Legal and Ethical Issues
- Cardiovascular
- Emergency Care of the Neurological Patient
- Emergency Care of the Respiratory Patient
- Emergency Care of the Trauma Patient
- Delegation
- Multisystem
- Health & Stress
- Childhood Growth and Development
- Prenatal and Neonatal Growth and Development
- Trauma-Stress Disorders
- Developmental Theories
- Concepts of Mental Health
- Gastrointestinal
- Newborn Complications
- Labor Complications
- Fetal Development
- Terminology
- Labor and Delivery
- Postpartum Care
- Prefixes
- Suffixes
- Proteins
- Statistics
- Med Term Basic
- Med Term Whole
- Cardiac Disorders
- Preoperative Nursing
- Intraoperative Nursing
- Vascular Disorders
- Noninfectious Respiratory Disorder
- Upper GI Disorders
- Central Nervous System Disorders – Brain
- Shock
- Immunological Disorders
- Postoperative Nursing
- Perioperative Nursing Roles
- Hematologic Disorders
- Disorders of Pancreas
- Neurological Trauma
- Neurological Emergencies
- Musculoskeletal Trauma
- EENT Disorders
- Peripheral Nervous System Disorders
- Respiratory Emergencies
- Shock
- Disorders of the Posterior Pituitary Gland
- Endocrine
- Disorders of the Thyroid & Parathyroid Glands
- Liver & Gallbladder Disorders
- Lower GI Disorders
- Respiratory
- Acute & Chronic Renal Disorders
- Disorders of the Adrenal Gland
- Documentation and Communication
- Oncology Disorders
- Female Reproductive Disorders
- Cognitive Disorders
- Renal Disorders
- Male Reproductive Disorders
- Sexually Transmitted Infections
- Infectious Respiratory Disorder
- Integumentary Disorders
- Urinary Disorders
- Integumentary Disorders
- Musculoskeletal Disorders
- Disorders of Thermoregulation
- Basics of NCLEX
- Integumentary Important Points
- Urinary System
- Neurologic and Cognitive Disorders
- Central Nervous System Disorders – Spinal Cord
- Renal and Urinary Disorders
- Respiratory System
- Infectious Disease Disorders
- EENT Disorders
- Eating Disorders
- Personality Disorders
- Psychological Emergencies
- Somatoform Disorders
- Prioritization
- Hematologic Disorders
- Cardiovascular Disorders
- Musculoskeletal Disorders
- Endocrine and Metabolic Disorders
- Oncologic Disorders
- Behavior
- Emotions and Motivation
- Growth & Development
- Intelligence and Language
- Psychological Disorders
- State of Consciousness
- Basics of Sociology
- Note Taking
- Basics of Human Biology