Chest Compressions Without Mouth-To-Mouth Better For Out-Of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest
A recent study published in The Lancet, one of the world's foremost medical journals, reveals that the chances of surviving a cardiac arrest outside a hospital setting are twice as high if bystanders perform chest-compression-only resuscitation (CCR) instead of traditional cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) with mouth-to-mouth breathing. The study analyzed the outcomes of resuscitation attempts performed by laypeople present at the scene after witnessing a collapse due to cardiac arrest.
"The report confirms that what we have learned in animal experiments applies to humans as well," says Gordon A. Ewy, MD, director of the Sarver Heart Center at The University of Arizona in Tucson where chest-compression-only resuscitation was developed. "Bystander-initiated continuous chest compressions without mouth-to-mouth breathing are the preferable approach for witnessed unexpected collapse, which is usually due to cardiac arrest."
Please see the Sarver Heart Center news release for more information about this study as well as CCR. For information about CPR training and certification and other available health and safety services in your area, please see the American Red Cross website.