2010 CPR Guidelines

2010 CPR Guidelines

The American Heart Association has released the new CPR Guidelines! As we all know, when someone has a heart attack their heart stops beating. In the  2005 CPR Guidelines the most important thing for a rescuer to do were the:

ABC’s – Airway, Breathing, and Circulation

The Heart now emphasizes:

CAB’s – Circulation, Airway, and Breathing

The American Heart recommends in the new CPR Guidelines for 2010 that we:

PUSH HARDER: Compress the chest of an adult 1 ½- 2 inches, allowing for complete recoil chest between compressions

PUSH FASTER: Compress the chest at a rate of 100 compressions/ minute

DON’T STOP PUSHING: Interruptions in chest compressions stops blood flow to the brain, which leads to brain death.  The AHA says you should keep pushing as long as you can.

If you are not a trained medical person you should consider:

Hands Only CPR: The AHA endorsed this form of CPR in 2008. The Heart Association still wants untrained lay rescuers to do Hands Only CPR on adult victims who collapse in front of them.

Steven The Nurse

PUSH HARD: Compress the chest of an adult 1 ½- 2 inches, allowing for complete recoil chest between compressions

PUSH FAST: Compress the chest at a rate of 100 compressions/ minute

USE CORRECT RATIOS: Deliver 30 compressions and 2 ventilations, in 2 minute blocks. Change compressors every two minutes, during pauses in compressions. At that time, also check rhythm and pulses.

MINIMIZE INTERRUPTIONS IN COMPRESSIONS:Stop CPR only for essential procedures, such as rotating compressors, pulse checks and rhythm checks, no more frequently than every 2 minutes. Make the pause in compressions as brief as possible

VENTILATE CAUTIOUSLY: Deliver breaths over 1 second, using just enough volume to produce visible chest rise. With an advanced airway in place, ventilate at a rate of 8-10 breaths per minute. For rescue breathing in a perfusing patient, deliver 10-12 breaths per minute.

DEFIBRILATE APPROPRIATELY: Deliver one shock and then immediately resume chest compressions. Check the rhythm and pulse after 2 minutes of CPR.