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Mayo Clinic Expert Discusses What's New For CPR Awareness Month
ROCHESTER, Minn. - June 8, 2012. Just the idea of performing CPR can intimidate the average person, whether it’s the thought of saving a life or or just trying to remember all of the steps. Well, maybe it's not that difficult. A move to simplify cardiopulmonary resuscitation practices is one of many advances that should be highlighted for the public during CPR Awareness Month, according to Mayo Clinic resuscitation expert Roger White, M.D.
Dr. White says other recent advances include the increasing use by professional responders of capnography, technology that gauges the effectiveness of CPR; widespread availability of automated external defibrillators in public places and emergency vehicles; and increasing use of therapeutic body cooling to protect recovering cardiac arrest patients from brain damage.
Soundbites with Dr. White are available in the downloads above.
Expert title for broadcast cg: Dr. Roger White, Mayo Clinic CPR Expert
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To request an interview with Dr. White please contact Sharon Theimer:
507-284-5005 (days)
507-284-2511 (evenings)
newsbureau@mayo.edu.
Just the idea of performing CPR can intimidate the average person, whether it’s the thought of what’s at stake or simply trying to remember all of the steps. A move to simplify cardiopulmonary resuscitation practices for the public is one of many advances important to highlight during CPR Awareness Month, says Mayo Clinic resuscitation expert Roger White, M.D.
Now, rather than taking time to check airways or trying to recall how many breaths to give, the guidance for what a bystander untrained in CPR should do if someone collapses boils down to this: If the person doesn’t respond to your command to awake, dial 911 to summon help, then immediately start continuous chest compressions. Press on the center of the chest as hard and as fast as you can — pushing about 2 inches down — and do it without stopping until help arrives to relieve you, says Dr. White, a Mayo Clinic anesthesiologist and a member of the American Heart Association scientific advisory committee that released the hands-only CPR call to action.
The move to make CPR more efficient and easier for the public to perform is one of several advances in resuscitation, Dr. White says. Others include use of technology called capnography to gauge the effectiveness of CPR, wide availability of defibrillators in public places and emergency vehicles, and growing use of therapeutic hypothermia to try to protect recovering cardiac arrest patients from brain damage.
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About Mayo Clinic:
Recognizing 150 years of serving humanity in 2014, Mayo Clinic is a nonprofit worldwide leader in medical care, research and education for people from all walks of life. For more information, visit 150years.mayoclinic.org, www.mayoclinic.org and newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org.
Media Contact: Sharon Theimer, Mayo Clinic Public Affairs at 507-284-5005 or newsbureau@mayo.edu
