Resuscitation
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Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study Clinical Trial
Four-step CPR--improving skill retention.
This study is an attempt to see if simplifying the teaching of basic life support leads to better skill acquisition and retention. Forty-eight lay volunteers received instruction in CPR; 24 were taught the standard 8-step sequence whereas 24 were taught a simplified 4-step sequence. Tests of performance were carried out on a manikin before and after training. ⋯ There was no difference, however, in the quality of performance of the skills between the two groups. In addition, it was shown that use of the 4-step sequence should result in a useful reduction in the time taken before a rescuer calls for the emergency services and commences CPR. Whether such a radical change in teaching should be introduced is a matter for further discussion and research.
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To assess the relative importance of multiple organ failure (MOF) and cerebral damage on the mortality rate following trauma we analyzed retrospectively the records from 99 polytrauma patients admitted to a multidisciplinary European intensive care unit in a 2 year period. In all, 93% of the trauma was non-penetrating and 73% was the result of road accidents. 28 patients died giving an overall mortality of 28.3%. ⋯ A total of six deaths occurred after 24 h, four due to extensive cerebral lesions, one due to hemorrhagic shock and one due to multiple organ failure. In our experience, cerebral damage was a more common cause of death than MOF following multiple non-penetrating trauma.
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This paper presents the second part of the validated Cardiff test for one rescuer basic life support skills, based on observation of video recording combined with the Recording Resusci Anne printout (VIDRAP). The authors believe that this is a robust evaluation tool which is capable of assessing the potential value to a casualty of a simulated resuscitation. The adoption of a widely accepted test methodology would facilitate comparison of research in different centres, which is not possible at present.
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Brainstem auditory evoked responses (BAER) are routinely used to monitor brainstem function in hospitalized comatose patients. We used a rat model of cardiac arrest and resuscitation to explore the possibility that the BAER, monitored during and immediately after cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), could be used to determine whether the CPR was effective in restoring brainstem blood flow. Long-Evans rats were subjected to 7 min of cardiac arrest, induced by chest compression under Ketamine anesthesia sufficient to mechanically prevent the heart from pumping blood and were then resuscitated using a standard CPR protocol. ⋯ If it was greater than 0.35 ms the rat died. This signal was used as a cue for intervention in three rats; two survived. Thus, in this preparation, the BAER provided a useful measure of CPR effectiveness, in time to permit successful intervention.