Archives - Biology: Page 23
Author: paul carson (Mon Mar 27, 2006 3:38 am)
Title: MEDICINE AND NURSING
Many Americans know how to perform CPR in an emergency to save someone who slips into cardiac arrest. But a recent widely circulated (and unsigned) e-mail message poses a compelling question: what if you find yourself in need of CPR and there is no one around to perform it?
According to the message, if you feel the radiating chest pains and lightheadedness that often signal a heart attack, you can keep yourself conscious by breathing deeply and coughing vigorously. This supposedly increases oxygen levels and squeezes the heart, allowing blood to circulate.
But experts say the "cough CPR" claim is largely untrue. It may have started because patients having angiograms are sometimes asked to cough forcefully when they have sudden abnormal heartbeats. Coughing deeply can help a person on the verge of passing out — a sign of cardiac arrest — until treatment can be given.
But for someone having a heart attack that does not result in cardiac arrest, coughing can be extremely dangerous. And since most people are not able to tell the difference, coughing during a heart attack is almost always a bad idea, according to the American Heart Association.
A study published in 1998 did find that the technique could be useful for people who suffer from a rare condition known as Stokes-Adams syndrome, which causes heart arrhythmias and frequent fainting. But in typical cases, doctors recommend a tried-and-true technique: call for help and pop an aspirin — quickly.
Coughing during a heart attack can be dangerous.
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grow and be kind
Yes, you should definitely take aspirin during a heart attack. The marketing executives at Bayer have been advertising that fact for years. I agree you should not cough during a heart attack, but who would honestly ask what you should do when you are in need of CPR? If you are in need of CPR, you are unconscious. The only possible scenario is one in which you assume you will be in need of CPR, something like "My chest hurts, I think I am having a heart attack...maybe I should start some CPR on myself." I don't see it happening.