WASHINGTON, D.C. – Oct. 23, 2001 – For the first time, residents of the nation’s capital can have access in their homes to lifesaving technology similar to that used in emergency rooms across the country, complete with a user-friendly training and support network. The Medtronic LIFEPAK® automated external defibrillator (AED), the world’s leading portable defibrillation device, is being offered to the public in an effort to increase the number of people who are saved from sudden cardiac arrest each day.

Most people aren’t aware of how common cardiac arrest is and where it most frequently happens. However, it is estimated that seven of 10 sudden cardiac arrests occur in homes, and in most cases help does not arrive in time.

“What this means is that defibrillation technology similar to what we see regularly on medical television shows like ER is now being made available to the average person,” said James D’Orta, M.D., chairman of LifeLinkMD, a nationwide medical support network for public access defibrillation located in Washington, D.C. “Because most people who suffer cardiac arrests do so in their homes and the great majority do not survive, it is crucial to have these devices available in homes throughout the nation.” While first responders and other emergency medical personnel do their best to quickly arrive at the scene of a cardiac arrest, they cannot control factors such as traffic or delayed calls from the scene to a dispatcher. Survival rates can jump from less than 5 percent to nearly 70 percent if defibrillation occurs within the first three minutes, but the average response time to a 911 call is six to 12 minutes.

“Studies show that if defibrillation shocks are not delivered within 10 minutes of sudden cardiac arrest, survival rates are only about 2 percent,” notes Marshall Stanton, M.D., medical director of Medtronic’s Cardiac Rhythm Management organization. “Obviously, wider availability of the Medtronic LIFEPAK AED, particularly in homes, would provide peace of mind and could be instrumental in saving the lives of many people who might otherwise die because a defibrillator did not arrive in time.”

According to the American Heart Association (AHA), sudden cardiac arrest is one of the leading causes of death among Americans, killing approximately 220,000 people a year or an estimated 600 people each day. It usually occurs without warning and can strike whether or not someone has been diagnosed with heart disease. The AHA advocates the widespread public use of AEDs to help save the lives of these victims and further states that the only effective way to treat sudden cardiac arrest is with a defibrillator. A defibrillator delivers an electrical current or shock, through the chest, to the heart. During defibrillation, the shock interrupts the random electrical pulses that characterize ventricular fibrillation (a rapid quivering of the heart that can cause cardiac arrest) and helps restore the heart to its normal rhythm.

Because AEDs are lightweight, portable and easy to use, they are being widely adopted throughout the United States by first responders such as firefighters, police officers and other emergency personnel. In the Washington, D.C., area, LIFEPAK AEDs currently are available at Reagan National, Baltimore/Washington International and Dulles International Airports and are used by the Washington, D.C., Fire and Police Departments.

LIFEPAK AED Saves Life of Fairfax County Employee One area person, an employee of the Fairfax County, Va., government center, knows firsthand the benefits of having a Medtronic LIFEPAK AED nearby. Without warning, the employee suffered sudden cardiac arrest while exercising at the County’s fitness center. Within a few minutes, two government center employees who had been trained to use AEDs helped revive the stricken employee using a defibrillator that had been borrowed from the Fairfax County Emergency Medical Services (EMS) organization.

“We received the AED only 19 days before it was used to help our employee,” said a Fairfax County supervisor. “It’s pretty incredible because, except for this incident, I don’t think we’ve ever needed to use an AED in the past.” The County is ordering 25 additional Medtronic LIFEPAK AEDs for use in all of its buildings.

AEDs are so easy to use that studies have shown even children in the 7th grade can operate the devices properly. With automation and visual and verbal prompts, the Medtronic LIFEPAK AED is able to sense and communicate whether a victim is experiencing ventricular fibrillation and is designed to deliver a shock only when it senses that a shock is necessary. Furthermore, it automatically senses when the victim requires additional shocks and delivers those shocks with escalating energy, as needed.

Medtronic, manufacturer of the LIFEPAK AED, launched its first consumer sales and information campaign on Oct. 15 in the Washington, D.C., market. The key message of the campaign is the need to improve survival rates associated with sudden cardiac arrest. The campaign, which will run through Dec. 16, focuses on the Medtronic LIFEPAK AED Home Solution, a bundle of healthcare services that includes the Medtronic LIFEPAK AED, plus:

· a medical prescription required to own a LIFEPAK AED;

· training and support in proper use of the device; and

· access to a 24-hour device consultation phone line.

Consumers are being directed to visit websites heart.webMD.com or www.medtroniclifepak.com, or to telephone 1-866-4LIFEPAK to order a free, informational video and brochure, sign up for a newsletter or purchase a Medtronic LIFEPAK Home Solution.

Medtronic, Inc., headquartered in Minneapolis, is the world’s leading medical technology company, providing lifelong solutions for people with chronic disease. Its Internet address is www.medtronic.com.