The Recommendations for CPR have recently changed. The new information from health agencies says it is the chest compressions that are our primary importance. According to the American Heart Association, if you see someone collapse, call 911, yell for help, and begin rapid chest compressions in the middle of the rib cage with one of your hands flat on top of the other. If there is someone there who can assist you or you are trained in CPR, after 30 compressions, have the other person pinch the nostrils closed and breathe twice into the victim’s mouth. Then resume chest compressions. Chest compression only CPR is an option and is being trained for workers who do not want to provide breathes to the victim.
If you find someone who has already collapsed, check his neck for a pulse and put your face close to his nose and mouth to check whether he is breathing. If he is not, tilt his head back to clear his airway and begin chest compressions without stopping to breathe for the victim. You must continue the compressions until help arrives: brain damage and death can occur in just a few minutes.
The ideal rate for chest compressions is 102 compressions a minute, about the same beat as the song “Stayin’ Alive” by the Bee Gees, or Queen’s “Another One Bites the Dust”. If humming these to yourself—or singing them aloud—helps keep you on pace, go for it. You are trying to save a life.
Also from the American Heart Association, heart attack warning signs are often.
- Chest discomfort
- Discomfort in other areas of the upper body (arms, back, jaw or stomach)
- Shortness of breath, and
- Other symptoms, like breaking out in a cold sweat, nausea, or lightheadedness
Note too that symptoms in women are often less specific than in men. Error on the side of caution. Call 911 first.