No More Mouth-to-Mouth Breathing for Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation

For those who find the mouth-to-mouth breathing portion of life-saving CPR to be a challenge, there is some good news.

Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) traditionally involved two components: mouth-to-mouth breathing to exchange any oxygen possible and chest compressions to get blood moving when the heart is not beating. It's not a substitute for urgent hospital care, but it provides a couple of extra seconds or minutes of life. It can sometimes mean the difference between life and death.

When I first learned CPR, I was taught to provide 2 breaths for every 15 chest compressions. Later, the guidelines were change to 2 breaths per 30 compressions. And now, you don't need to give breaths, because chest compressions alone have been shown to be just as effective.

It's probably because giving breaths takes a few seconds. You could be spending that same amount of time doing chest compressions. Perhaps it's not the air you're giving that's potentially life-saving. It's the blood flow. You can try to oxygenate the blood, which may provide minimal benefit, but it's no good if that blood is not moving without your compressions. After all, the organs need perfusion, especially the brain since it's most sensitive to oxygen deprivation.

So if someone needs CPR and you're comfortable with chest compressions only, take comfort in that you can still be a hero doing this.