Immediate cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) could double the chance of survival for children who experience out-of-hospital cardiac arrest, a study released on Thursday last week showed.
The study by Linkou Chang Gung Memorial Hospital also showed that CPR for children having cardiac arrests could prevent brain damage caused by a lack of oxygen.
A team at the hospital studied 152 patients younger than 18 from 2005 to 2016 who experienced out-of-hospital cardiac arrests and were later admitted to the hospital, pediatric general medicine director Lee Jung (李嶸) told a news conference.
The study showed that 15 patients received CPR prior to being admitted to the hospital, and of that group, there was a 60 percent chance to restart the heart at the hospital, he said.
For the other cases in which patients received no CPR prior to being admitted, there was a 32 percent chance of restarting the heart, he added.
Many parents rush their child to the hospital without first trying CPR, because they do not understand its importance or they lack the confidence to perform it, but the immediate use of CPR doubles the chance of survival, Lee said.
The study included an equal number of male and female patients, and 47 percent were younger than one.
Out-of-hospital cardiac arrests in children occur on average 1.5 times every month, among which 54 percent are due to choking and up to 76 percent occur at home, it showed.
The study found that only one-third of the patients regain heartbeats after reaching the hospital, 14 percent survive and 5 percent function normally afterward.
Complications resulting from a lack of oxygen to the brain could increase the risks of hindered brain development and even cerebral palsy, hospital attending physician Wu Chang-teng (吳昌騰) said.
Permanent damage could occur if the brain is deprived of oxygen for more than six minutes, and CPR using external force to supply the brain with more blood and oxygen could prevent the situation from happening, he said.
Key points to focus on when performing CPR include quick and hard compressions, the rebound of the chest and continuity of the compressions, Wu said.
Compressions should be administered at a rate of at least 100 per minute, and at a depth of about one-third of the chest capacity each time, he said, adding that the rising of the chest signals the timing for the next compression, and the break period between compressions should not exceed 10 seconds.
Deliver two breaths to the patient’s mouth after each set of 30 compressions, and if the heart does not restart, repeat the cycle until it is beating or an ambulance arrives, he said.
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