RT Book, Section A1 Shah, Chirag N. A1 Rogers, Patrick J. A1 Morrison, Daniel S. A2 Reichman, Eric F. SR Print(0) ID 1159796307 T1 Transcutaneous Cardiac Pacing T2 Reichman's Emergency Medicine Procedures, 3e YR 2018 FD 2018 PB McGraw-Hill Education PP New York, NY SN 9781259861925 LK accessemergencymedicine.mhmedical.com/content.aspx?aid=1159796307 RD 2024/10/12 AB Transcutaneous cardiac pacing (TCP) was first documented as a technique in 1872.1 It was successfully demonstrated in two patients with underlying cardiac disease and symptomatic bradycardia.1 The clinical difficulty of open-chest pacing, transvenous pacing, and open-chest cardiac massage for the treatment of “ventricular standstill” in an emergent setting has been recognized.1,2 Animal experiments were performed using electrodes placed in various positions prior to the use of subcutaneous needle electrodes at points “in a line transversing the ventricles.”1 The use of the procedure during eight surgical cases in which cardiac arrest occurred resulted in five patients successfully surviving to discharge.2 Cardiac monitoring during surgery was not routinely performed and the underlying rhythm being paced was not specifically determined in all reported cases.