Heart Association: Hands only CPR Works
The American Heart Assosciation recently put out a release that stated in most cases, CPR using only rapid, deep chest compressions is just as effective as using the traditional method of breaths and compressions. Most of the time when a person collapses and is in need of CPR, it is because of cardiac arrest. Cardiac arrest can be caused by a number of complications such as myocardial infarction, or other cardiac disease. In this case the unfortunate person still has air in their lungs and will often gasp for air while compressions are being administered. The problem is that their heart can not pump blood to the brain and other vital organs. By administering rapid chest compressions (about 100/min), doctors believe that a persons chance of survival from cardiac arrest could double or triple.
Often when a person collapses, bystanders are reluctant to begin administering CPR because of fear of infection or the simple "yuck factor". Doctors are hoping that people will be more inclined to step in and administer potentially life saving compressions since they will not have to worry about doing mouth-to-mouth. There are however certain instances in which breaths are still needed. These include anything where the lungs cannot fill properly with air such as a near drowning incidentm, drug overdose, or carbon monoxide poisoning. Also the heart association has said that for children breaths should still be administered because if they collapse they are more likely to have a breathing problem.
The CPR technique was not scheduled to be updated until 2010, but beacuse of three studies done last year it was updated. All three studies suggested that compression only CPR was just as effective as the traditional method. News of this new method has been met with enthusiasm and even had Dr. Gordon Ewy, director of the University of Arizona Sarver Heart Center in Tucson, and proponent of compression only CPR, "Dancing in the streets".
http://www.cnn.com/2008/HEALTH/03/31/hands.only.cpr.ap/index.html
Often when a person collapses, bystanders are reluctant to begin administering CPR because of fear of infection or the simple "yuck factor". Doctors are hoping that people will be more inclined to step in and administer potentially life saving compressions since they will not have to worry about doing mouth-to-mouth. There are however certain instances in which breaths are still needed. These include anything where the lungs cannot fill properly with air such as a near drowning incidentm, drug overdose, or carbon monoxide poisoning. Also the heart association has said that for children breaths should still be administered because if they collapse they are more likely to have a breathing problem.
The CPR technique was not scheduled to be updated until 2010, but beacuse of three studies done last year it was updated. All three studies suggested that compression only CPR was just as effective as the traditional method. News of this new method has been met with enthusiasm and even had Dr. Gordon Ewy, director of the University of Arizona Sarver Heart Center in Tucson, and proponent of compression only CPR, "Dancing in the streets".
http://www.cnn.com/2008/HEALTH/03/31/hands.only.cpr.ap/index.html
posted by Jay Greene at 8:47 PM
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