Effects of ‘rescuer’ rotating time on the quality of chest compressions: 1-minute vs. 2-minute intervals

Abstract

Introduction Fatigue can influence the quality of continuous chest compression cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CCC-CPR). This study was conducted to compare the effect of ‘rescuer’ rotating time on the quality of chest compressions at 1-minute and 2-minute intervals. Methods The present semi-experimental study was conducted on 70 non-professional ‘rescuers’ as 35 two-person teams using a crossover design. All teams performed eight 2-minute cycles of CCC-CPR with a rotation of 1 minute and 2 minutes. Quality metrics of the chest compression rate, appropriate depth of compression, and total rate of compressions at the end of eight 2-minute cycles were used to assess the quality of the chest compressions. Results The study results showed that the number of chest compressions with an adequate depth performed by the non-professional rescuers in the 1-and 2-minute scenarios were respectively 118.18 and 100.87. There was no significant difference in the number of chest compressions between the two scenarios at the end of the CCC-CPR, but the number of compressions with sufficient depth in the 1-minute scenario was better than that in the 2-minute scenario. Conclusion The study showed that although the rate of chest compression had a downward trend in the 1-minute scenario, rescuers maintained 100 to 120 chest compressions after 16 minutes. This means that non-professional rescuers replacement after 1 minute can increase chest compression with sufficient depth.