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Cardiac resuscitation

Continuous chest compressions do not improve outcomes

Nature Reviews Cardiology volume 13, page 5 (2016)Cite this article

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In patients with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest, continuous chest compressions during cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) do not increase rates of survival or favourable neurological function in comparison to interrupted compressions according to findings published in The New England Journal of Medicine and presented at the AHA Scientific Sessions 2015.

Accordingly, the Resuscitation Outcomes Consortium conducted a cluster-randomized trial with crossover including 114 emergency medical service (EMS) agencies. Adults who experienced a cardiac arrest out of hospital that was not related to trauma received either continuous compressions (100 per minute) and 10 ventilations per minute given simultaneously (intervention group), or interrupted compressions at a ratio of 30 compressions to two ventilations (control group). Clusters of agencies were randomly assigned to either of these resuscitation strategies and crossed over twice per year to perform the other procedure. The primary outcome was the rate of survival to hospital discharge. Neurological function at discharge (measured using the modified Rankin scale) and hospital-free survival (defined as the number of days alive and out of hospital during the 30 days after arrest) were assessed as secondary outcomes.

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References

  1. Nichol, G. et al Trial of continuous or interrupted chest compressions during CPR. N. Engl. J. Med. 10.1056/NEJMoa1509139

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Authors
  1. Clarissa Oeser
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Oeser, C. Continuous chest compressions do not improve outcomes. Nat Rev Cardiol 13, 5 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1038/nrcardio.2015.177

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/nrcardio.2015.177

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