NIHON KOHDEN CardioLife Acti-Biphasic Defibrillation Output Waveform

Category: Product Review, Polarity of "ActiBiphasic" waveform.

 

From advertising material, as well as operating and service manuals of CardioLife Acti-Biphasic defibrillators, we know the declared Acti-Biphasic waveform looks like what is shown in below picture. This is also the waveform submitted to obtain regulatory approvals around the world, supported by a Certificate of Free Sales from Japanese regulatory authority, MHLW and/or CE Certification.

THE   DECLARED   WAVEFORM

Declared characteristics of the Acti-Biphasic waveform in advertising, operator and service manuals

The basic concept of a bi-phasic shock energy is to add a negative follow-up phase to the conventional mono-phasic shock to achieve the same defibrillation result using lesser energy

 

The characteristics of NIHON KOHDEN Acti-Biphasic defibrillation can be summarized as:

 

1. First (Launch) Phase

The Acti-Biphasic waveform is seen as operating in an open loop during the first phase (period).

 

- It is a positive truncated exponential pulse with a duration depending on the patient impedance.
- It is of a longer duration than the second period.

 

 

2. Second (Follow-up) Phase

The Acti-Biphasic waveform operates in a closed loop during the second phase. In a closed loop the duration of the width can be deliberately set to a specific duration.

 

- This second phase (period) is shorter in duration and of negative polarity.
- The duration in this phase is fixed to a constant 3.4ms duration regardless of patient impedance. How was the optimal duration of 3.4ms arrived at? It is also not clear how was the maximum energy of 270 Joules concluded?

 

Note the first phase (period) is positive and a wider pulse than the second phase

The first to use the Acti-Biphasic waveform were the TEC-7700 series defibrillators

 

The first Acti-Biphasic defibrillators

Output discharged by CardioLife TEC-7700K series defibrillators is consistent with the declared waveform

 

The discharge waveform of the CardioLife TEC-7700K series on a strip chart is as shown below. The recording correctly reflects the first phase as a positive pulse.

 

The recording shows the voltage first swings to the top (positive saturation), then to negative saturation after some time; this is fully consistent with the official description of the Acti-Biphasic waveform.

The reason we are not seeing the full shape of the Acti-Biphasic waveform on the recording is because the sensitivity is set to see the smaller ECG waveform, and not the defibrillation shock which are much higher in magnitude

 

This strip chart recording shows output of CardioLife TEC-7700K series is consistent with the declared description

How can we know if the Acti-Biphasic defibrillation shock actually works on patients?

The margin of error is high for data from a small 75 investigated cases

 

There is no white paper available. The Acti-Biphasic defibrillators were hurriedly launched (for export) before completion of proper clinical validation and the small sample size of seventy five investigated cases meant a high margin of error; we cannot be sure the Acti-Biphasic defibrillation shock works on patients! In addition, how can we be absolutely sure the investigated cases were done in an acceptable manner?

As the mono-phasic defibrillators are not predicate devices so the FDA 510(K) process cannot be used to clear the product for sales in the US market. Since the clinical data and methodology adopted by NIHON KOHDEN fell short of US FDA guide for safety and effectiveness, the Acti-Biphasic defibrillation shock is not allowed for sales in the US market; Nihon Kohden could have engaged a consultant to ensure a proper and acceptable clinical validation process if they had wanted to do it right. This implies the design is not yet good for use, and further improvements are needed for it to meet US FDA requirements.

It is additionally needed to clarify current CE certification is no guarantee of clinical performance since clinical validation is not included.

The persistent remarks we often heard from NIHON KOHDEN marketing staff on American Heart Association recommendations are in reality, meaningless to Acti-Biphasic defibrillators.

Outside of the US market, we need to question the point of buying such critical treatment devices and placing them on standby to save lives? Remember, compliance to just safety standards is no guarantee of performance! It is so unfair to the patients needing immediate treatment in a life-threatening situation!

Biphasic defibrillation was a nightmare, one that caught NIHON KOHDEN off guard

In May 1997 Nihon Kohden released a new defibrillator with a semi-automatic AED mode for export using mono-phasic defibrillation. The details of this TEC-2200K series can be found in the 1997 Product Guide.

The monophasic CardioLife TEC-2200K series was launched for export in May 1997

This was a mono-phasic model using the non-proprietary Edmark single-phase pulse as illustrated and the use of rechargeable battery for energy made it very inconvenient for public use.

Edwark, Single Phase Pulse defibrillation waveform used by monophasic CardioLife TEC-2200K series in 1997

 

The monophasic output discharge waveform shape is shown below. Note its shape as we will later show Acti-Biphasic AED-2100K, AED-2150K, AED-2152K and AED-3100 automated external defibrillators all discharge the same monophasic energy.

CardioLife TEC-2200K mono-phasic output waveform recorded on a strip chart dated April 1995

 

Just a few months after the TEC-2200 series was released, then market leader Hewlett Packard made announcement to acquire Heartstream Inc. in a stock-swap deal.

Heartstream ForeRunner

Biphasic defibrillation waveform was becoming the new preference as it allowed for a smaller and lighter defibrillator design; more importantly it uses less current and this means less damage defibrillation will do to the heart and skin. The deal with Heartstream was how the then defibrillator market leader HP acquired biphasic technology, since to develop one would take time and speed to market was a top priority. 

 

On the other hand, there was zero interest in the monophasic TEC-2200 series defibrillators offered by Nihon Kohden for ex-Japan market and the products had to be withdrawn from exporting.

 

Unlike the monophasic pulse, biphasic waveform comes in various forms; each type of shape is proprietary and cannot be copied freely. This means the energy envelopes of manufacturers in the market are all different. For some waveform, the manufacturers only recommend a maximum of 200 joules while another can recommend energy as high as 360 joules. All manufacturers must therefore justify the use of their proprietary output waveform in some reasonable ways, preferably in accordance with US FDA guide for safety and effectiveness, which calls for clinical research validations or the manufacturers should at least cite published clinical papers which had been properly subjected to peer review.

NIHON KOHDEN was taken by surprise the speed of global shift to biphasic defibrillation technology

 

It was a market disruption that NIHON KOHDEN was unprepared for. The company was at a loss for the next four years how to obtain the technology to offer biphasic defibrillators.

When the demand for biphasic AEDs emerged in the Japanese domestic market, the company had to rely on finding a suitable partner with biphasic technology for co-operation. A strategic OEM distribution agreement was announced in January 2002 that Nihon Kohden would market Cardiac Science's line of AEDs under Nihon Kohden's trade name. This arrangement was a big success and many AED-9200 and AED-9231 were sold in Japan as reflected in annual reports and presentations.

NIHON KOHDEN CardioLife AED-9200 and AED-9231 were highlighted to have very good sales in FY2006 financial results presentation

The Cardiac Science STAR biphasic waveform (see white paper) was validated by researchers at Cleveland Clinic and Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in accordance with US FDA guides for Safety and Effectiveness

The success of the STAR biphasic shock in the domestic market however, could not be replicated for exports to foreign markets since distributors could buy the original models at much cheaper prices from Cardiac Science directly.

 

Instead of licensing the proprietary biphasic defibrillation design from Cardiac Science, we were surprised a few engineers in NIHON KOHDEN could just by experimenting biphasic circuitry on pigs easily concluded a workable, proprietary Acti-Biphasic shock circuitry. It was done internally, with minimal clinical supervision and collaboration, the company thus had great difficulty securing the necessary clinical support to advance the number of investigated cases for proper clinical validation. To date, there is not a single clinical paper published on Acti-Biphasic defibrillation.

Customers were buying unproven defibrillators based on blind faith

 

Before completion of proper clinical validation, the company was bold enough to go ahead with exporting the unproven TEC-7700 series Acti-Biphasic defibrillators from November 2002, taking advantage of its established distribution network for mono-phasic defibrillators. The sales were done based on blind faith, for there was no published clinical paper to show that it works. This November 2002 export launch was three long years ahead of the date Japan MHLW officially approved its use for the domestic market.

The Absence of Internal Safeguards 

The desperate action was taken in response to the rapid changing preference for biphasic defibrillators in the market but the process totally overlooked the seriousness of mandatory successful clinical studies before marketing; the fact that Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (MHLW) had not yet approved the sales of TEC-7700 series defibrillators in Japan domestic market reflected the disturbing absence of internal safeguards in corporate conduct.

 

Up to this point, the company had never exported a new product before first launching it in Japan, showing the company was in complete disarray. It is not just loss of credibility in overseas markets as a leading defibrillator exporter from Japan but a ticking time bomb with important issues left unattended.

 

Before completion of proper clinical validation, Nihon Kohden began exporting unproven proprietary Acti-Biphasic defibrillators in 2002

Japanese Regulatory Authority took three long years to grant approval for the TEC-7700 series defibrillators to be allowed for sales in Japan

 

This meant the application was turned down several times and serious doubts by the Regulatory Authority to grant its use. What prompted the decision to clear it after three years' wait is something we should know, is the manufacturer willing to share the fact? By the time of receiving approval to sell in Japan, many CardioLife TEC-7700 series defibrillators were already exported.

 

NIHON KOHDEN was only able to announce the launch of TEC-7700 series defibrillators for sales in Japan market on December 1st, 2005.

 

A highly unlikely event

There was an unlikely event before the above announcement. More than a year prior to the announcement, Nihon Kohden had incredibly gone on to launch another unproven Acti-Biphasic TEC-5500 series defibrillators for export sales in August 2004. Why was the need to launch the TEC-5500 series before Regulatory Authority approval for TEC-7700 series defibrillators? It does not make sense, the urgent launch of TEC-5500 series defibrillators for export was therefore a dubious event.

We later found the Acti-biphasic waveform discharged by the TEC-5500 series defibrillators is flipped vertically upside down from that of the TEC-7700 series defibrillators! The change in the shape of the waveform was not disclosed at the time of launch, it was only discovered later by accident. This means the manufacturer decided at this point not to continue with the declared waveform that is being published on the service and operator manuals.

To put it another way, Cardiolife TEC-5500 defibrillators was the series later found to have Acti-Biphasic discharged waveform flipped vertically upside down from that of the TEC-7700 series and it was happening right before Japan MHLW granted approval for the TEC-7700 series, and without showing any clinical studies done to support its use!

 

Unproven CardioLife TEC-5500K series started to be exported from August 2004, when Japan MHLW had not approved the sales of CardioLife TEC-7700 series

 

The Timeline

Export of unproven CardioLife TEC-5500K series started in August 2004, more than one year before Japan MHLW actually approved the TEC-7700 series

CardioLife TEC-5500 series defibrillators were quickly approved for sales in Japan after the approval was given for CardioLife TEC-7700 series, based on the principle of declared substantial equivalence with the newly-approved TEC-7700 series. In Japan, the Acti-biphasic waveform discharged by Japanese version TEC-5500 series defibrillators are unlikely to be different from that discharged by TEC-7700 series defibrillators.

However, the export models of the TEC-5500 series, TEC-5600 series and TEC-8300 series defibrillators were all found by us to have their discharged waveform inverted, but submission documents to foreign regulatory authorities were all based on the TEC-7700 series. Are the regulatory approvals valid?

 

A top prestigious University Hospital in Taiwan was the first to find the polarity of TEC-5500K discharge waveform inverted from what was declared on the operator and service manuals

In the image below, we were greatly puzzled to learn of an adverse report from a competent Biomedical Engineering Team in National Taiwan University Hospital (Taipei City) that the polarity of measured waveform discharged by two tested CardioLife TEC-5500K series defibrillators were inverted (i.e. opposite in polarity) from what the manuals had described.

The tests were a result of investigation after a serious performance failure incident that raised doubts about its efficacy. The investigation brought up many unanswered questions and only the IEC60601-2-2:2002 electrical safety compliance was put to rest. We should be clear the issue was not about safety, but effectiveness of defibrillation.

  

There was no doubt since they had tested both models TEC-5521K (S/N 09xx4) and TEC-5531K (S/N 05xx4) to arrive at the same conclusion; the suffix K is for export models using English language as interface (for example the suffix J is for Japan domestic models), indicating more than 9000 units of TEC-5521K and more than 5000 units of TEC-5531K had been produced before the two tested units respectively. Detailed comparison was also done with defibrillators from another manufacturer (Philips) using the same testing equipment (Fluke Impulse 7000DP with 7010 Selectable Load) and the polarity was consistent with the manual descriptions of Philips.

 

This was an input from professionals that the Acti-Biphasic waveform discharged by CardioLife TEC-5500K series defibrillators starts with a negative polarity and ends with a positive polarity; it is the exact opposite (inversion) of what were shown on the operator and service manuals. As far as we know, there is no known manufacturer with a discharged biphasic waveform that starts with a negative polarity, NIHON KOHDEN is unique in this approach but there is no clinical research done to validate its use on patients!

Is this equivalent to a delayed fixed-width monophasic discharge?

The next image showed the illustration from another distributor (Thailand) sending in a Nihon Kohden defibrillator analyzer AX-103VK (OEM device) for repair.

The AX-103VK defibrillator analyzer has a discharge waveform output on the rear panel for oscilloscope display

The analyzer was concluded by their technical staff to be defective because the display on the oscilloscope was inverted; the analyzer was of course working fine. Said Thailand distributor is a top distributor who had sold the highest number of CardioLife TEC-7700K series defibrillators in the world and knew too well what is the "Correct Graph", confident of the defect conclusion. The conclusion turned out to be erroneous because the service manual wrongly informed them a TEC-5500K series defibrillator has similar output as a TEC-7700K series defibrillator.

Guess what? Someone in Tokyo has the audacity to ask the distributor staff to "just flip the APEX/ STERNUM connections" to obtain the "correct graph"!

 

Changing "Evaluation machine" from a TEC-7700K defibrillator to a TEC-5500K defibrillator

What could be the reason for the sudden change of mind? Was it due to copyright pressure? Does the inverted waveform only apply to export models since Japan MHLW solely approved the TEC-7700 series version?

 

The declared current flow direction of NIHON KOHDEN Acti-Biphasic shock energy is the one on the left while we discovered actual biphasic flow is the one shown on the right

The clinical trial data cited to regulatory authorities is based on the TEC-7700 series defibrillators for all Acti-Biphasic defibrillators, including the TEC-5500 series, TEC-8300 series and latest TEC-5600 series.

 

There were only some clinical data from TEC-7700 series defibrillators

 

When the discharged waveform is flipped upside down, the already-scanty TEC-7700 series clinical data cited becomes totally irrelevant

 

It is serious matter if the actual output waveform is different from the manual descriptions, as well as any inaccurate description documents submitted together with operator/ service manuals to regulatory authorities.

It means there is no approval from regulatory authorities to use a discharge waveform that is flipped upside down, and this is a ticking time bomb.

 

Change in current direction demands fresh clinical trial and validation

As a responsible company, NIHON KOHDEN must act fast and should have by now long recalled all Acti-Biphasic defibrillators from the market. There is no denying customers are still buying Acti-Biphasic defibrillators based on blind faith.

 

 

The Acti-Biphasic output discharged by AED-2100 series is seen avoiding the declared waveform in a monophasic way

The AED-2100K defibrillator was announced for export from October 2009 (Signal SE.C-19), it retained many features and appearance of the Cardiac Science OEM models except the proprietary output waveform.

 

CardioLife AED-2100K is exported to many parts of the world, albeit in small quantity; exception seems to be Taiwan and South Korea. It is not exported to the US market where it does not have US FDA clearance for the use of the Acti-Biphasic output waveform.

 

CardioLife AED-2100K seen distributed in Taiwan

 

The model AED-2100K did not have a screen display, which a later model was added in January 2012 with this feature. A more compact and lower-cost AED-3100 has now replaced AED-2100 series with some small changes.

 

The defibrillation success stories of AED-9200 and AED-9231 in Japan are routinely cited to sell later models but this is a misrepresentation

 

Current offer of AED-2152 and AED-3100 are not authorized to use the STAR biphasic waveform and had nothing to do with earlier OEM models in terms of defibrillation technology.

 

The defibrillation success stories of AED-9200 and AED-9231 in Japan are routinely cited to sell later models but this is a misrepresentation that should be dropped immediately; the success stories cannot be linked to the latest AED-3100 defibrillator! Unlike the STAR biphasic defibrillation output, the Acti-Biphasic defibrillation output employed by CardioLife AED-3100 and AED-2152 defibrillators do not meet US FDA approval for use in the USA market.

 

AED images from Japan

 

How can a user view the "Acti-Biphasic" output waveform discharged by a NIHON KOHDEN defibrillator?

 

The QP-551VK defibrillator report viewer software can be used on a PC or laptop to review event recorded by any CardioLife defibrillator, including the AED defibrillators.

 

The defibrillator report viewer can be used to review events recorded by a NIHON KOHDEN defibrillator

 

Below shows a review screen of an AED-2100 defibrillation event using the QP-551VK software; the event was recorded using a simulator with TTR value of 49 ohm. Notice the discharge output of AED-2100 is the same as older TEC-2200K monophasic defibrillator!

 

Where is the negative second phase? < Please take a second look at earlier TEC-7700K discharge waveform >

The energy output discharged by AED-2100 series and AED-3100 AED defibrillators are the same as that discharged by monophasic TEC-2200K series AED defibrillators released in May 1997!

 

The TEC-2200K series monophasic discharge waveform dated April 1995, which did not have a negative second phase

What is the American Heart Association (AHA) recommendation for shock energy of mono-phasic defibrillators?

In the TEC-2200K series manual mode, the monophasic defibrillator energy storage has the following choices:

25J, 50J, 100J, 150J, 200J, 300J or 360J

When arrhythmia requiring defibrillation is detected in the semi-automatic mode, the defibrillator will automatically charge to the energy according to the following defibrillation sequence:
First  Defibrillation: 200J
Second Defibrillation: 300J
Third  Defibrillation: 360J

 

This is consistent with American Heart Association recommendation for a monophasic defibrillator, which Nihon Kohden is allowed to sell in the US market.

The above implies AED-2100K, AED-2150K. AED-2151K, AED-3100 do not comply with AHA recommendations for a monophasic defibrillator.

 

And why are the operator/ service manuals not reflecting the shape we had observed?

 

 

Discharged waveform expected from AED-2100K shown on user manual

 

We should pause and think about the seriousness of the points raised on the Acti-Biphasic defibrillation output.

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