Part 6: Alternative Techniques and Ancillary Devices for Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation

Abstract

Conventional cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) consisting of manual chest compressions with rescue breaths is inherently inefficient with respect to generating cardiac output. A variety of alternatives and adjuncts to conventional CPR have been developed, with the aim of enhancing perfusion during resuscitation from cardiac arrest. Since the publication of the 2010 American Heart Association (AHA) Guidelines for CPR and Emergency Cardiovascular Care (ECC),1 a number of clinical trials have provided additional data on the effectiveness of these alternatives and adjuncts. Compared with conventional CPR, many of these techniques and devices require specialized equipment and training. Some have only been tested in highly selected subgroups of cardiac arrest patients; this context must be considered when rescuers or healthcare systems are considering implementation.MethodologyThe recommendations in this 2015 AHA Guidelines Update for CPR and ECC are based on an extensive evidence review process that was begun by the International Liaison Committee on Resuscitation (ILCOR) after the publication of the ILCOR 2010 International Consensus on Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation and Emergency Cardiovascular Care Science With Treatment Recommendations2,3 and was completed in February 2015.4,5In this in-depth evidence review process, the ILCOR Advanced Life Support (ALS) Task Force examined topics and then generated a prioritized list of questions for systematic review. Questions were first formulated in PICO (population, intervention, comparator, outcome) format,6 search strategies and criteria for inclusion and exclusion of articles were defined, and then a search for relevant articles was performed. The evidence was evaluated by the ILCOR ALS Task Force by using the standardized methodological approach proposed by the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE) Working Group.7The quality of the evidence was categorized based on the study methodologies and the 5 core GRADE domains of risk of bias, inconsistency, indirectness, imprecision, and {…}