Updated CPR guidelines: What you need to know
The American Heart Association (AHA) recently updated its choking, opioid overdose, and CPR guidelines for children and adults. This is the first time choking protocols are included.
The AHA estimates that approximately 350,000 people in the U.S. experience a cardiac arrest. Studies show 9% of adults and 39% of children experience a cardiac arrest as a result of choking or asphyxiation. Meanwhile, a recent United Nations report estimates that opioids cause 80% of all drug overdose deaths worldwide.
“With opioid overdoses continuing to be a significant threat to public health, it’s great to see some published guidelines and protocols,” says Dr. Daniel Boyes, an emergency medicine provider at Advocate Health Care. “Hopefully, the new protocols will make it more accessible for the average person to respond to those emergency situations.”
New choking guidelines
For adults and children, responders should alternate five back blows with five abdominal thrusts until the object is expelled or the person becomes unresponsive.
For infants, responders should alternate between five back blows and five chest thrusts using the heel of their hand until the object is expelled or the infant becomes unresponsive.
New opioid overdose guidelines
In the case of a suspected opioid overdose, responders should administer OD-reversal medication naloxone as long as it doesn’t interfere with CPR efforts.
Signs of an opioid overdose include, but are not limited to, unresponsiveness, slow heartbeat, clammy skin and extremely small pupils.
New CPR guidelines
New guidance allows the use of mechanical CPR in situations where delivering compressions is difficult or poses a risk. However, manual CPR is recommended in most cases.
A streamlined approach to emergency response protocols
“Having updated protocols, specifically for choking and opioid overdose, is a huge step,” says Dr. Boyes. “These changes will hopefully make the interventions clearer and more effective for those who have to use them.”
The new guidance also says that children aged 12 and older are capable of learning CPR and defibrillation. It also revises the chain of survival, or the steps to take when someone is experiencing cardiac arrest, to a single, simplified chain of survival for all cardiac events despite age or setting, allowing responders to act faster.
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health enews contributor, is on the digital content team at Advocate Health Care and Aurora Health Care. They received their bachelor's degree in Creative Writing and French from Ohio Wesleyan University. Outside of work, they are a writer and comedian and can be found in the mountains during their free time.
