Problems with the use of self-adhesive electrode pads in neonates

SummaryThe use of hands free self-adhesive electrode pads for monitoring and defibrillation, rather than using defibrillation paddles, has been widely adopted in many hospitals. This system can be used on automated external defibrillators as well as manual defibrillators. We describe two cases where we could not cardiovert neonates safely using self-adhesive electrode pads (SAEP) with a manual defibrillator and why we had to revert to using standard paediatric defibrillator paddles.