CPR: Chest Compressions Alone Can Preserve Brain Function

CPR’s mouth-to-mouth resuscitation and chest compressions have saved countless lives, but the chest pumps alone may be just as effective during medical emergencies.

A Japanese study found that people who used hands-only, or compression-only cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) on people in cardiac arrest saved more lives and preserved brain function compared to those using the compressions combined with resuscitative breaths.

In the study, published in the journal Circulation, researchers reviewed the records of 1,376 people in Japan who experienced sudden cardiac arrest and then received CPR along with shocks from an automated external defibrillator (AED) from bystanders. Among the patients, about 37% received compression-only CPR and about 64% received full CPR with both compressions and ventilating breaths.

(VIDEO: New CPR Guidelines: Hands Only)

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