Digital Commons Network^™

Cardiac, Thoracic, And Abdominal Pump Mechanisms In Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation: Studies In An Electrical Model Of The Circulation, Charles F. Babbs, Christopher Weaver, Sandra H. Ralston, Leslie A. Geddes

Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering Faculty Publications

To investigate alternative mechanisms generating artificial circulation during cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), an electrical model of the circulation was developed. Heart and blood vessels were modeled as resistive-capacitive networks; pressures in the chest, abdomen, and vascular compartments as voltages; blood flow as electric current; blood inertia as inductance; and the cardiac and venous valves as diodes. External pressurization of thoracic and abdominal vessels, as would occur in CPR, was simulated by application of half-sinusoidal voltage pulses. Three modes of creating artificial circulation were studied: cardiac pump (CP), in which the atria and ventricles of the model were pressurized simultaneously; thoracic pump …