Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation

Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR)

CPR is a medical procedure for providing artificial respiration and blood circulation when normal breathing and blood circulation have stopped (Encyclopedia Britannia, 2007) CPR keeps oxygenated blood flowing to the brain and heart (Laffitte, 2006) until medical professionals arrive to perform defibrillation. CPR is an emergency procedure used on someone whose heart has stopped beating or who is not breathing; this procedure could save their life.

CPR is a skill that I feel everyone that is capable should learn not only parents and Medical personal. It is a skill that can save lives. CPR can be used in emergency situations such as, when a person is choking, goes into cardiac arrest, almost drowns or suddenly stops breathing. Anyone with a small child at home could benefit from knowing CPR. Small children can easily choke on a toy, food or even come close to drowning in the bath tub or any pool of water. Everyone in a household where there are adults in the home that are at risk of going into cardiac arrest, should take a training course on CPR because cardiac arrest victims that receive CPR have a better chance of survival. Sudden cardiac arrest, where the hearts stops beating abruptly claims the lives of 325,000 Americans each year before they arrive at a hospital. (Rau, 2007) In America the leading cause of death is cardiac arrest. On average only 6 percent of victims of cardiac arrest survive because witnesses do not know how to perform CPR. (Rau, 2007)

Per the American Heart Association (2007), 75 to 80 percent of out of hospital cardiac arrests happen at home, if you are trained in CPR and a loved one suffers from a cardiac arrest this could be the difference between life and death. When CPR is performed immediately after cardiac arrest the chances of the victim’s survival rate can double. After a victim goes into cardiac arrest, brain death occurs within four to six minutes if no CPR and or defibrillation occur. (American Heart Association, 2007) For every minute that no CPR or defibrillations occur, the victims chances of survival falls 7 to 10 percent. (American Heart Association, 2007).