Individualized rescuer change by a team leader during uninterrupted cardiopulmonary resuscitation: comparison with rescuer change in 2-min intervals

Objective: Currently recommended cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) guidelines to change rescuers in 2-min intervals do not consider the differences in the physical capability of individual rescuers. We compared the quality of chest compressions between the conventional rescuer rotation method (RC2, rescuers changed in 2-min intervals) and the novel rescuer rotation method (RCL, rescuers changed by a team leader’s decision on the basis of gross assessment of the quality of chest compression). Methods: Ninety-six rescuers (48 pairs) were recruited and the sequence of the two-rescuer change methods (RC2 and RCL) was randomized. Forty-eight teams performed 8 min of uninterrupted two-rescuer CPR on a manikin with Skill-Reporter during two consecutive days (one method for each day). Results: The RCL method achieved deeper compression depth (mm) (52.6±3.8 vs. 49.5±4.7, P=0.002) and a higher number of correct chest compressions per minute (96.3±41.2 vs. 77.6±52.7, P
Source: European Journal of Emergency Medicine - Category: Emergency Medicine Tags: Original Articles Source Type: research