How to do CPR to an adult

How to Do CPR on an Adult

Administering CPR

In 2010, the American Heart Association made a radical change to the recommended CPR process for victims of cardiac arrest.^[1] Now, studies have shown that compression-only CPR (no mouth-to-mouth breathing) has equal standing with the traditional Airway-Breathing-Compression approach. In an attempt to encourage bystanders to perform CPR, the AHA has modified the procedure to CAB (Compression-Airway-Breathing) and stated that individuals can skip the latter two steps as they wait for emergency services to arrive. Consult the following articles for information about performing CPR on infants and children.

Steps

1. 1
   Check the scene for dangers. If you come across someone who is unconscious, you need to quickly make sure there are no dangers to yourself if you choose to help them. Is there a car exhaust running? A gas stove? Is there a fire? Are electrical lines down?
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2. 2
   Check the victim for consciousness by shaking or tapping their shoulder and saying in a loud, clear voice, "Are you okay? Are you okay?"
   • If they respond, they are conscious. They may have just been sleeping, or they could have been unconscious. If it still appears to be an emergency situation (e.g. they are having trouble breathing, they appear to be fading in between consciousness and unconsciousness, they were unconscious, etc.) call for help and begin basic first aid and take measures to prevent or treat shock.^[1]
   • If they do not respond, continue with the following steps.
3. 3
   Send for help. The more people available for this step the better, however, it can be done alone. Send someone to call the Emergency Medical Services (EMS).
   • Call 911 in North America, 000 in Australia, 112 by cell phone in the EU (including the UK) and 999 in the UK.
4. 4
   Check the victim’s pulse. Do not check for more than 10 seconds. If the victim does not have a pulse, continue with CPR and the next steps.
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     To check the neck (carotid ) pulse, feel for a pulse on the side of the victim's neck closest to you by placing the tips of your first two fingers beside his Adam's apple.
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     To check the wrist (radial) pulse, place your first two fingers on the thumb side of the victim's wrist.
   • Other pulse locations are the groin and ankle. To check the groin (femoral) pulse, press the tips of two fingers into the middle of the groin. To check the ankle (posterial tibial) pulse, place your first two fingers on the inside of the ankle.
5. 5
   Perform CPR for one minute (which is about three cycles of CPR) and then call the EMS before resuming with CPR. If possible, send someone else to get an AED (Automatic External Defibrillator) if there is one in the building.
6. 6
   Remember CAB: Chest Compressions, Airway, Breathing. In 2010, the AHA changed the recommended sequence to deliver chest compressions before airway opening and rescue breathing. Chest compressions are more critical for correcting abnormal heart rhythms (ventricular fibrillation or pulseless ventricular tachycardia), and because one cycle of 30 chest compressions only require 18 seconds, airway opening and rescue breathing are not significantly delayed.^[2]
7. 7
   Give 30 chest compressions. Place your hands on top of each other and place them on the sternum, or in the center of the chest (on the breastbone) between the two nipples. Your ring finger should be on top of the nipple (this will lower the chances of breaking a rib or ribs).
   • Compress the chest, with elbows locked, by pushing straight down at least 2 inches deep.^[2]
   • Do 30 of these compressions, and do them at a rate of at least 100 compressions per minute.^[2]
   • Allow complete chest recoil after each compression.^[2]
   • Minimize pauses in chest compression that occur when changing providers or preparing for a shock.^[1] Attempt to limit interruptions to less than 10 seconds. ^[2]
8. 8
   Make sure the airway is open. Place your hand on the victim's forehead and two fingers on their chin and tilt the head back to open the airway (if you suspect a neck injury, pull the jaw forward rather than lifting the chin). If jaw thrust fails to open the airway, do a careful head tilt and chin lift.
9. 9
   If there are no signs of life, place a breathing barrier (if available) over the victim's mouth.
10. 10
    Give two rescue breaths. Keeping the airway open, take the fingers that were on the forehead and pinch the victim's nose closed. Make a seal with your mouth over the victim's mouth and breathe out for about one second. Make sure you breathe slowly, as this will make sure the air goes in the lungs not the stomach. Make sure you keep your eye on the victim's chest.
    • If the breath goes in, you should see the chest slightly rise and also feel it go in. If the breath goes in, give a second rescue breath.
    • If the breath does not go in, re-position the head and try again. If it does not go in again, the victim may be choking. Do abdominal thrusts (the Heimlich manuever) to remove the obstruction.
11. 11
    Repeat the cycle of 30 chest compressions and 2 breaths. You should do CPR for 2 minutes (5 cycles of compressions to breaths) before checking for signs of life. Continue CPR until someone takes over for you, emergency personnel arrive, you are too exhausted to continue, an AED is available for immediate use, or pulse and breathing return (signs of life).

Video

A video demonstration of performing CPR on an adult.

Tips

• If you are unable or unwilling to perform rescue breathing, engage in compression-only CPR with the victim. This will still aid the victim in recovering from cardiac arrest.^[1]
• Get proper training from a qualified organization in your area. Training from an experienced instructor is the best way to be prepared in an emergency.
• If you must move the victim, try to disturb the body as little as possible.
• Always call Emergency Medical Services.
• You can get guidance on correct CPR technique from an emergency services operator if needed.
• If an AED becomes available, turn on the AED, place the pads as instructed (one over the right chest and another over the left side), allow the AED to analyze the rhythm, and give one shock if indicated, after clearing everyone from the patient. Resume chest compressions immediately after each shock for another 5 cycles before reassessing.

Warnings

• If the person has normal breathing, coughing, or movement, do not begin chest compressions. Doing so may cause the heart to stop beating. ^[3]
• Remember that CPR is different for adults, children and infants; this CPR is meant to be administered to an adult.
• Always wear gloves and use a breathing barrier when possible to make transmission of diseases less likely.
• Do not move the patient unless they are in immediate danger or are in a place that is life threatening.

http://www.wikihow.com/Do-CPR-on-an-Adult