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Journal ArticleDOI

The mechanism and nature of ventricular fibrillation

Carl J. Wiggers
- 01 Oct 1940 - 
- Vol. 20, Iss: 4, pp 399-412
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TLDR
The available evidence favors the conclusion that, after a single premature systole, the phenomenon is caused by re-entry of circulating wave fronts which involve smaller and smaller blocks of myocardium, each of which develops an independent excitation.
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This article is published in American Heart Journal.The article was published on 1940-10-01. It has received 302 citations till now. The article focuses on the topics: Sudden death & Fibrillation.

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Journal ArticleDOI

Nonuniform Recovery of Excitability in Ventricular Muscle

Jaok Han, +1 more
- 01 Jan 1964 - 
TL;DR: The degree of dispersion following a basic beat was increased by stimulation of the cardiac sympathetic nerves, administration of chloroform, ouabain intoxication, and administration of higher doses of quinidine, myocardial ischemia, and hypothermia, but it was decreased by administration of sympathomimetic amines.
Journal ArticleDOI

Termination of ventricular fibrillation in dogs by depolarizing a critical amount of myocardium

TL;DR: Successful defribillation results when a critical amount of myocardium becomes depolarized by either potassium chloride or electrical discharge; depolarization of every cell in both ventricle is not necessary to terminate ventricular fibrillation in the entire heart.
Journal ArticleDOI

Optical Imaging of the Heart

TL;DR: A critical overview of current approaches, their contributions to the field of cardiac electrophysiology, and future directions of various optical imaging modalities as applied to cardiac physiology at organ and tissue levels is provided.
References
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Journal ArticleDOI

Ventricular fibrillation due to single, localized induction and condenser shocks applied during the vulnerable phase of ventricular systole

TL;DR: It is shown that in order to produce premature contractions by shocks applied during systole it was necessary to utilize very strong break shocks, and in the zeal to elicit such contractions ventricular fibrillation all too often terminated the experiment.
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The muscular reactions of the mammalian ventricles to artificial surface stimuli

TL;DR: The muscular reactions of the mammalian ventricles to localized artificial stimuli have not been studied with the degree of precision that the subject merits, and a reasonable familiarity with these communications is essential in order to follow the data and conclusions presented in this paper.
Journal ArticleDOI

Studies of ventricular fibrillation caused by electric shock

TL;DR: The natural course of events from the onset of fibrillation following faradic excitation to complete diastolic rest was studied by recording electrocardiograms and moving pictures simultaneously and the process of recovery following similar injections of 5 per cent CaCl2 solutions combined with massage was investigated.
Journal ArticleDOI

The refractory period of the normally-beating dog's auricle; with a note on the occurrence of auricular fibrillation following a single stimulus

TL;DR: The automatic features of the method make possible the determination of the refractory period under adrenalin, which brings about a distinct shortening of the refinery period but less than that produced by stimulation of the vagus.
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