Lesson 2

CARDIOPULMONARY RESUSCITATION
B: CARDIOPULMONARY RESUSCITATION (CPR)
   

An emergency procedure that combines chest compressions often with artificial ventilation in an effort to manually preserve intact
brain function until further measures are taken to restore spontaneous blood circulation and breathing in a person who is in cardiac arrest.
It is an emergency life-saving procedure that is done when someone's breathing or heartbeat has stopped. This may happen after
an electric shock, heart attack, or drowning. It is a technique in BLS for oxygenating the brain and heart until appropriate definitive medical
treatment can restore normal heart and ventilation.
. It is a procedure that involves breathing for the victim and applying external chest compression to make the heart pump

CPR combines rescue breathing and chest compressions.

● Rescue breathing provides oxygen to the person's lungs.
● Chest compressions keep oxygen-rich blood flowing until the heartbeat and breathing can be restored.
Permanent brain damage or death can occur within minutes if blood flow stops. Therefore, it is very important that blood flow and
breathing be continued until trained medical help arrives. Emergency (911) operators can guide you through the process.

Cardiac Arrest is the condition in which circulation ceases and vital organs are deprived of oxygen.

Three Conditions of Cardiac Arrest

▣ Cardiac Vascular Collapse. The heart is still beating but its action is so weak that blood is not being circulated through the
vascular system to the brain body tissues.
▣ Ventricular Fibrillation. Occurs when the individual fascicles of the heart beat independently rather than the coordinated,
synchronized manner that produce rhythmic heart beat.
▣ Cardiac Standstill. It means that the heart has stopped beating.

WHEN TO STOP CPR

▣ S – Spontaneous signs of circulation are restored.
▣ T – Turned over to medical services or properly trained and authorized personnel.
▣ O – Operator is already exhausted and cannot continue CPR.
▣ P – Physician assumes responsibility (declares DEATH/takeover)
▣ S – Scene became unsafe.
▣ S – Signed waiver to stop CPR

CPR provided in the field increases the time available for higher medical responders to arrive and provide ALS care. An important advance
in providing BLS is the availability of the automated external defibrillator or AED. This improves survival outcomes in cardiac arrest cases.
Use CPR when an adult is not breathing or when they are only gasping occasionally, and when they are not responding to questions or
taps on the shoulder.

In children and infants, use CPR when they are not breathing normally and not responding.

Check that the area is safe, then perform the following basic CPR steps:
1. Call 911 or ask someone else to.
2. Lay the person on their back and open their airway.
3. Check for breathing. If they are not breathing, start CPR.
4. Perform 30 chest compressions.
5. Perform two rescue breaths.
6. Repeat until an ambulance or automated external defibrillator (AED) arrives.