Table of contents:
- Actually, the CPR technique is effective or not?
- It is not necessary to give mouth-to-mouth rescue breaths
- So, what to do in an emergency situation?
Cardiac and pulmonary resuscitation (CPR / Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation) is a life-saving technique commonly used in an emergency. For example, a heart attack or while drowning, in which a person's breathing or heartbeat stops completely. However, recently a number of surveys and studies have shown that this technique is actually ineffective at helping someone. Is that true? Check out the answer below.
Actually, the CPR technique is effective or not?
There are two things that need to be considered in the CPR procedure in general, namely chest compressions (compression of the chest area) to maintain blood circulation and giving breath by word of mouth (mouth-to-mouth breathing) to maintain oxygen supply to the victim's body.
Respiratory support from mouth to mouth (mouth-to-mouth CPR) so it is not effective if it is done by a person without a medical background or having never attended CPR training before. Why so? This CPR technique should be done by people who have participated in CPR training, not only as long as they give mouth-to-mouth breaths like in the movies.
Without knowledge and training on proper resuscitation techniques, CPR does not help. Make no mistake, giving breaths in CPR is not as easy as it seems in movies or television shows. CPR is more than just breathing into someone else's mouth. You should also continue to monitor the victim's condition, perform chest compressions, and know exactly how many seconds each step is.
In fact, a study in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) in 2012 showed that of all victims who received CPR rescue breaths, only 2% were eventually saved and recovered.
So far, the act of giving breath by mouth in CPR is quite difficult to do. Not everyone can do well and requires adequate training. Even trained health workers will find it difficult to do so if it is not carried out regularly.
Apart from requiring the strength of the breath and lungs of the helper, this action is also at risk of transmitting disease, especially respiratory disease, from the victim to the helper or vice versa.
It is not necessary to give mouth-to-mouth rescue breaths
So far, the act of giving breath by mouth is an integral part of the CPR procedure. However, a recent study reports that CPR without giving breaths of mouth is just as effective as standard CPR.
According to two studies published by the New England Journal of Medicine , CPR technique performed only with chest compressions is sufficient to help the patient, without giving mouth-to-mouth breaths. There was no significant difference in the safety level of victims who were helped by chest compressions alone and those who were also given rescue breaths.
Research has shown that CPR with chest compressions alone is more effective than CPR with chest compressions and rescue breaths.
Research conducted in Washington, United States (US) shows that the safety level of victims who are helped only by chest compressions is 12.5%. Meanwhile, those who were also helped by artificial respiration had a lower success rate, namely 11%.
A second study in Sweden proved that the safety rate for victims who were given CPR assistance with only chest compressions was 8.7%. Meanwhile, the standard CPR is 7%.
So, what to do in an emergency situation?
If you have no medical background and have never been trained in CPR techniques, there is no need to give rescue breaths when helping someone who has lost consciousness or has stopped breathing.
You simply do CPR by means of chest compressions. Check out the steps in this link or at bit.ly/CPR techniques and most importantly, seek emergency medical help immediately.
