FRIDAY, Feb. 13 (HealthDay News) -- In patients with ventricular fibrillation or tachycardia, the likelihood of return of spontaneous circulation falls steadily as pre-shock pauses in cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) chest compressions grow longer, according to research published Feb. 6 in BMC Medicine.
Kenneth Gundersen, of the University of Stavanger in Norway, and colleagues used an electrocardiogram database to analyze data on 5,138 two-second analysis windows from 911 intervals without chest compressions following intervals with compressions. Patients had out-of-hospital cardiac arrest in Norway, Sweden and the United Kingdom.
The investigators found a relative decrease of roughly 23 percent in the estimated probability of the return of spontaneous circulation as the pre-shock pause in chest compression stretches from 3 to 27 seconds. This is equal to a 1 percent relative decrease for each second of the pause.
The results show "that limiting interruption in chest compressions is important for patients in all states and that every second without perfusion has a negative effect on probability of return of spontaneous circulation. The current results therefore give support for a strong focus on improving CPR quality," the authors write. "A pre-shock pause in compressions of a couple of seconds to ensure the safety of emergency medical services personnel, or to perform rhythm analysis on artefact-free electrocardiogram, may be acceptable."
A co-author is on the board of Laerdal Medical.
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