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Heart-pounding experience: New guidelines put more emphasis on chest compressions(Messenger-Inquirer (Owensboro, KY) (KRT) Via Thomson Dialog NewsEdge) Dec. 29--With cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), every second counts, since every minute without it reduces a cardiac arrest victim's chance of survival. To make that time more effective, national CPR guidelines now recommend doubling the number of chest compressions from 15 to 30 before giving two mouth-to-mouth breaths. The recommendations are based on the conclusion that blood flow is more important for the victim than receiving breaths, said Rod Kimble with the American Heart Association. "The lack of blood (does) more harm than lack of oxygen for the long haul," said Kimble, regional manager for Kentucky and West Virginia for the association's Emergency Cardiovascular Care. The new method comes from scientific studies done by the International Liaison Committee on Resuscitation between the five-year reviews of resuscitation techniques. The latest results were finalized in late November. The emphasis of compression over resuscitation won't reach the instructor level until March or April while the association finds the best way to incorporate the changes, he said. The national American Red Cross is doing the same, said Elaine Pack, training and marketing director for the Big Rivers Chapter that trains about 7,000 people a year in CPR. "It's still being reviewed," she said. "We're going to make sure it's implemented in the best way for course participants and anyone they need to give care for." Kimble and Pack emphasized that people trained in performing CPR should still use the current method. "Keep doing what you're doing. It's not ineffective," Kimble said. The new method might be more effective once it is adapted into courses, he said. "It's supposed to be simplified and easier to remember and easier to teach" to the public, Pack said. Updated CPR classes for the layperson will start about late March, she said. Professional rescuers can take updated courses this summer and lifeguards next winter, she said. The changes deal with CPR performed on adults. It takes five to seven compressions to make blood circulate through the body, said Kimble, a former paramedic. With the current 15-compression method, a CPR administrator only gives eight to 10 blood-coursing pushes before stopping to give two breaths, Kimble said. With 30 compressions, they would push 23-25 times before breaking, Kimble said. The changes also include replacing the suggested slow breaths that last 11/2 to 2 seconds with shorter ones that last about a second and cause a visible rise in the chest, he said. That takes less time away from compressions and relieves pressure in the chest caused by mouth-to-mouth resuscitation that prevents blood from returning to the heart, he said. The proposed new technique doesn't change the speed -- 100 per minute, or nearly two per second -- at which compressions are done, Kimble said. It emphasizes that the chest wall should be allowed to recoil, or return to relaxation, between compressions, Kimble said. "CPR will double your chance of survival," he said. For every minute without it or defibrillation, the chance of surviving drops 7 to 10 percent, he said. Ideally, CPR should be started within one to two minutes and defibrillation within three to five minutes after cardiac arrest starts, he said. Many people take CPR classes because their work requires it, Pack said. "They are more likely to use it on a family member or someone close to them than they are someone at work," Pack said. She first learned it in the early 1980s when she mistook her husband's heartburn for a heart attack. "It made me realize I didn't know what to do," Pack said. "It scared me into action, into learning what to do." She became an instructor and later was called upon to use the skills on a man whose heart chamber had burst. "It was like an automatic pilot kicked in," Pack said. Practice and review are essential to those who learn C PR, she said. "It is so important for people to stay up and know what's going on," including new techniques, Pack said. "If they're staying up on their training, they'll get the new information." For Information For more information about the changes in cardiopulmonary resuscitation, call the American Heart Association at 888-CPR-LINE (277-5463). CPR classes are offered each month at the Big Rivers chapter of the American Red Cross. Prepayment and preregistration are required. For more information, call 683-2438 or (800) 621-4982, e-mail Elaine Pack at [email protected] or visit the Web site at http://www.bigriversredcross.org. |