It's made in France, weighs just a pound, and may save your life.
The FDA's reviewing an application to approve the defibrillator, called the FRED [First Responder Easy Defibrillator] easyport.
It's billed as smaller, lighter, but just as effective as the larger automated external defibrillators (AEDs) now being sold in the U.S.
FRED would only be available by prescription at first.
60,000 people a year in the U.S. alone collapse each year, after the sudden, unexpected onset of ventricular fibrillation.
Once v-fib, as we call it in the business, begins, you have 5 minutes until permanent brain damage occurs.
Less if you're not in good health to begin with.
That's why the results of CPR are so uniformly dismal: very rarely is a defibrillator available within that critical 5-minute window.
The FDA is also currently considering whether the Philips HeartStart Home Defibrillator - a full-size AED - can be sold without a prescription.
That's the one I'd planned on buying for my car trunk, as you may recall from my post of March 20.
The FRED easyport is small enough to be worn on a belt, making it increasingly popular with people who want a lightweight AED.
The device is popular in Europe with mountain rescue services, police, and airplanes.
The FRED is considered a breakthough technologically because it delivers enough of a shock to save a life but uses less energy.
That lets it use a much smaller battery than models currently popular in this country, which weigh between 4 and 10 pounds.
I'm up for a FRED - how 'bout you? [via Robert Davis in today's USA Today]
Article comments
1 - RJ
But how much does it cost?