Hands Only CPR

The American Heart Association recently adopted changes to their CPR recommendations and this is good news for the average person. They have found through study that simple chest compressions work as well as combining them with mouth to mouth breathing in many cases.

What is a hands only CPR compression? Rapid, deep presses of about 100 per minute applied to the center of the chest until help arrives and an electronic defibrillatorcan be used.

Experts hope that the simpler application will encourage people without training to get involved when someone collapses unexpectedly. If the thought of putting your mouth to another person's was just too close for comfort, then you'll be happy to know that it is no longer needed in most cases. Many people without training were afraid to do more damage by doing the treatment wrongly, but the chest compressions will not cause any further damage and has proven to help in most cases.

It is believed that the majority of adults who suddenly collapse are experiencing cardiac arrest and that the hands only method can help. However, if a child has the same experience, a combination of the old older system is still encouraged since many children collapse from breathing problems rather than heart attack.

If you are interested in getting certified in CPR there are a few options for training. Learning the traditional techniques for CPR are important for infants, children and drowned people so training is still a good thing to have. Your local chapter of the American Heart Association, the YMCA, and some junior colleges offer courses in CPR for free or low cost.

The term Hands - Only CPR was decided on after consulting with expertise the fields of communications and resuscitation. It is designed to quickly imply the action and to be simple and easy to remember in stressful situations.

So how do you handle it if someone collapses right in front of you? Call 911 or tell someone else to do it. Begin CPR immediately. If you are trained and confident in your breathing techniques, please use it, but if you are not, continue with the Hands - Only CPR technique and continue until the trained professionals arrive. If you get tired, and this will likely happen before too long, ask someone else to take over for a while. If you are alone, do the best you can for as long as you can.