Resuscitation
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Comparative Study
Treatment of post resuscitation myocardial dysfunction: aortic counterpulsation versus dobutamine.
Post resuscitation myocardial stunning is well described and recognized as a significant contributor to poor long-term outcome following cardiac arrest. Optimal strategies for treatment have not been determined. ⋯ Dobutamine was superior to IABP for treatment of post resuscitation left ventricular systolic and diastolic dysfunction. The hypothesized advantage of IABP for treatment of post resuscitation myocardial stunning without excessively raising the heart rate like dobutamine was not realized.
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This study retrospectively analyzed the pattern of sodium bicarbonate (SB) use during cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) in the Brain Resuscitation Clinical Trial III (BRCT III). BRCT III was a prospective clinical trial, which compared high-dose to standard-dose epinephrine during CPR. SB use was left optional in the study protocol. ⋯ Therefore, if SB is used, earlier administration may be considered. Contrary to physiological rationale, clinical decisions regarding SB use did not seem to take into consideration the duration of pre-ACLS hypoxia times. We suggest that guidelines for SB use during CPR should emphasize the importance of pre-ACLS hypoxia time in contributing to metabolic acidosis and should be more specific in defining the duration of "protracted CPR or long resuscitative efforts", the most frequent indication for SB administration.
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Prompt and effective cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) is the first link in the chain of survival following cardiac arrest. We assessed a new device, the CPR-Ezy (Medteq Innovations Pty Ltd., Brisbane, Australia), to aid timing and effectiveness of external cardiac compressions (ECC), by 32 subjects who had prior community-based training in CPR. ⋯ Effectiveness of compressions was also improved over the whole time period, especially so in the last minute. We conclude that the CPR-Ezy can improve timing and effectiveness of ECC, and reduce the effects of resuscitator fatigue, in community-trained subjects.