Afraid to Give Mouth-to-Mouth Resuscitation?
Ever wonder if you would be squeamish giving mouth-to-mouth resuscitation to a stranger and therefore be afraid to help with CPR? Or have you worried you might not remember the correct ratio of mouth breaths to chest compressions? Well two studies released in the July 29th 2010 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine showed that there was no significant difference in survival rates among those who received strictly chest compression treatment versus those who received mouth-to-mouth and chest compression CPR (standard CPR).
The studies did not include patients who suffered a cardiac arrest while hospitalized. Instead, it looked at out-of-hospital victims who suffered a suspected cardiac arrest who had laypersons performing CPR while awaiting the arrival of the emergency medical techs. Emergency medical dispatchers who answered 911 calls gave randomly assigned instructions to callers on either compression-only CPR or standard CPR. Previous animal studies had indicated that compression-only CPR were equally effective compared to chest compression/mouth-to-mouth resuscitation.
The conclusion in both groups showed that patients had just as good outcomes as measured by survival rates 3o days after the event than those who received standard CPR.
The bottom line is if someone you know collapses and you suspect cardiac arrest, don’t hesitate to give just chest compressions until the EMTs arrive!
If you’re interested in reading more about these studies, the articles are, “CPR with Chest Compression Alone or with Rescue Breathing” and “Compression-Only CPR or Standard CPR in Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest“.
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