New CPR recommendations don't apply to children
Categories: Health & safety, In the news
The American Heart Association has revised the recommended procedure for performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) - but only for adults. Experts now say that for an adult, you can skip the mouth-to-mouth part of the standard CPR procedure and concentrate only on the chest compressions. The hands-only method is simple - call 911 and then begin administering hard and fast compressions in the center of the chest until a medical professional takes over or a defibrillator can be used to restore the heart rhythm. This should be done only for adults who collapse unexpectedly, stop breathing and are unresponsive.
The reasoning behind the change is that in most cases, an adult will be experiencing cardiac arrest. When the heart suddenly stops, there is still air in the lungs and blood and the compressions will keep the blood moving to the brain, heart and other organs.
For children, however, the cause of a sudden collapse is more likely to be related to breathing problems. Therefore, mouth-to-mouth breathing is vital to get air into their lungs and bloodstream. This is also true for adults who are clearly suffering from lack of oxygen due to drowning, drug overdose or carbon monoxide poisoning.
While the new recommendations may be based on solid evidence that chest compressions alone work best for adults experiencing cardiac arrest, there is another reason to do away with the mouth-to-mouth part. Anonymous surveys have found that many people are reluctant to get that personal with a stranger, partly due to fear of infections.
"When people are honest, they're not going to do it," says Dr. Michael Sayre, an emergency medicine professor at Ohio State University. "It's not only the yuck factor."
Learn more about CPR and heart health for kids from the American Heart Association.
The reasoning behind the change is that in most cases, an adult will be experiencing cardiac arrest. When the heart suddenly stops, there is still air in the lungs and blood and the compressions will keep the blood moving to the brain, heart and other organs.
For children, however, the cause of a sudden collapse is more likely to be related to breathing problems. Therefore, mouth-to-mouth breathing is vital to get air into their lungs and bloodstream. This is also true for adults who are clearly suffering from lack of oxygen due to drowning, drug overdose or carbon monoxide poisoning.
While the new recommendations may be based on solid evidence that chest compressions alone work best for adults experiencing cardiac arrest, there is another reason to do away with the mouth-to-mouth part. Anonymous surveys have found that many people are reluctant to get that personal with a stranger, partly due to fear of infections.
"When people are honest, they're not going to do it," says Dr. Michael Sayre, an emergency medicine professor at Ohio State University. "It's not only the yuck factor."
Learn more about CPR and heart health for kids from the American Heart Association.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Jenn 4-02-2008 @ 1:57PM
Thanks for this...you have reminded me that I really need to go and get Red Cross certified in CPR & First Aid....always a good thing to have!
Reply
pbhj 4-02-2008 @ 4:44PM
>>> "When people are honest, they're not going to do it," says Dr. Michael Sayre, an emergency medicine professor at Ohio State University. "It's not only the yuck factor."
Is this guy saying people are going to not perform CPR because they have to touch someone with their mouth? Really??
I hope I misunderstood.
Reply
claire 4-02-2008 @ 6:07PM
No, that's exactly what he means. Even as a CPR/First Aid trained Lifeguard (back in college), they issued me a mask to fit over someone's mouth (if used correctly, the mask is airtight, thus works almost better than mouth-to-mouth) so I didn't have to give anyone for real mouth-to-mouth. And that was MY JOB.
I never had to revive anyone (thank goodness), but I wouldn't have hesitated to give mouth-to-mouth if the mask was not at hand. But, again, it was MY JOB. Any Jane or John Doe, who may happen to know CPR, probably doesn't want to put their mouth on a stranger's, regardless of the potential danger of NOT doing so.
pbhj 4-02-2008 @ 8:57PM
.. and how many of those people will eat disgusting animals parts for a little fame and a few hundred dollars?
claire 4-02-2008 @ 11:32PM
Sad but true. I was always of the impression that if I could help save someone's life, I didn't care about the condition of his/her mouth. Interesting too, to think that those same people that might shrink from giving an adult mouth-to-mouth for fear of where that mouth "has been," probably would not think twice about putting their mouth over a child's, simply because a child's mouth might seem "cleaner" than an adult's or the child's life might seem more "valuable."
(Sorry for all the double quotes. Just waxing thoughtful.)
Karen 4-02-2008 @ 10:05PM
It's best for all parents and anyone who works with children to recertify their CPR as soon as it expires. They are constantly updating the procedures for doing CPR each and every time I've recertified (20 yrs now). It pays to go take a refresher course, because you never know when you will need to do it.
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Molly 4-02-2008 @ 10:16PM
Thanks for posting this Sandy! I work at the American Heart Association, so I'm so glad to see that the 'hands only' message is getting out there. There has been plenty of research that says that people are reluctant to do CPR, not only for the yuck factor, but because they are afraid of doing it wrong. If preaching the hands only message will save more lives, then I'm all for it!
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ninainindia 4-03-2008 @ 1:27AM
Every year when we do the refresher course the way to do CPR has changed, this makes it lose its credibility. Not only does it change, it often changes back to how we were taught to do it 3 years ago. It's an endless circle of the best way to do it.
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Melissa Waugh 6-02-2008 @ 5:42PM
For those out there who are looking for a convenient way to learn and practice Infant and Child choking rescue and CPR skills at home, let me suggest CPR Teddy (www.CPRTeddy.com). Another option is the Infant CPR Anytime and the Adult/Child CPR Anytime (www.americanheart.org). No matter how busy you are, make time to learn the skills that can save a life.
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