Importance of Prolonged Compression during Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation in Man

Abstract

Standards for external cardiac compression include compression of the chest for 50 per cent of cycle time and a compression rate of 60 per minute.1 Warnings are given against "quick jabs." Animal studies do, in fact, suggest that the duration of prolonged compression is important in effective resuscitation.2 To achieve a duration of 50 per cent during manual external cardiac compression, there must be a distinct pause at maximal compression. Application of this principle to man appears to have been slow, perhaps because of doubts about the applicability of animal data to man. In view of the obvious importance of . . .