Of patients with in-hospital cardiac arrest, those with pulseless electrical activity (PEA) have the worst outcome. Especially in these patients effective chest compressions according to the guidelines may be the key strategy to improve survival. Recently, a novel automatic mechanical chest compression device (LUCAS-CPR) has been shown to ensure effective continuous compressions without interruption during transport, diagnostic procedures and in the catheter laboratory, and may thus significantly improve outcome after resuscitation of in-hospital cardiac arrest. We report here on the first five well documented cases of in-hospital resuscitation of PEA using the LUCAS-CPR compression device.
Hendrik Bonnemeier, Göran Olivecrona, Gregor Simonis, Matthias Götberg, Gunther Weitz, Peter Iblher, Ivana Gerling, and Heribert Schunkert.
Int. J. Cardiol. 2009 Aug 14;136(2):e39-50.
AbstractOf patients with in-hospital cardiac arrest, those with pulseless electrical activity (PEA) have the worst outcome. Especially in these patients effective chest compressions according to the guidelines may be the key strategy to improve survival. Recently, a novel automatic mechanical chest compression device (LUCAS-CPR) has been shown to ensure effective continuous compressions without interruption during transport, diagnostic procedures and in the catheter laboratory, and may thus significantly improve outcome after resuscitation of in-hospital cardiac arrest. We report here on the first five well documented cases of in-hospital resuscitation of PEA using the LUCAS-CPR compression device.