cpr 101

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By Rachel Martin

According to the American Heart Association, 80 percent of cardiac arrests occur at home, in the presence of a family member or other witness. Only 6.4 percent of sudden cardiac arrest victims survive. Most attribute this low percentage to the fact that oftentimes the person or people witnessing the cardiac arrest don’t know how to perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR).

CPR can save lives. Learning it is easy, thanks to the many community classes, seminars, and even at-home tutorials available. Plus, with the increased availability of automated external defibrillators (AEDs), the chances of saving someone from sudden cardiac death has increased.

If you’re unsure about the proper CPR techniques or don’t remember how to begin, this guide will help jog your memory. But, this guide can’t substitute for one-on-one instruction from a certified instructor.

How to Know When Someone Needs CPR
If someone—adult, child, infant, or pet—is not breathing and his/her heart is not beating, it is time to perform CPR. If you have found the person unconscious and unresponsive, and you are with someone else, have the other person call 911 while you perform CPR. If you are alone, and if the victim is an adult, call 911 and retrieve an AED (if available) and then proceed with CPR using the AED when appropriate.

Continue doing CPR until either the person revives (very unlikely, but possible) or until help arrives.

How CPR Works
Through chest compressions and mouth-to-mouth resuscitation, CPR helps pump a small amount of oxygenated blood to the brain and other vital organs, keeping a person alive until the heart can be defibrillated back to a normal rhythm.