[Effects of automated external defibrillators on hands-off intervals in lay rescuers].

Background: Survival chances after out-of-hospital cardiac arrests caused by hyperdynamic electric cardiac rhythms can be significantly improved by early defibrillation with automated external defibrillators (AEDs). As postulated in international guidelines, the resulting hands-off intervals should not exceed 10 s.

Objectives: We investigated delay in onset of chest compressions and the length of hands-off intervals during defibrillation associated with the application of AEDs.