Aim: The aim was to investigate the ambulance nurses experiences during a specific ambulance missions that led to usage of LUCAS ™.Method: Participating ambulance nurses were randomly assigned from a total sample group of 12 women and 39 men. Five women and five men participated. Qualitative interviews were conducted, where the Critical Incident Technique approach was used. Collected interviews were valued using qualitative content analysis.Result: Interview texts were divided into three domains, 10 subcategories could be identified which were sorted into three categories. A theme was finally formulated.The initial alarm data from SOS Alarm is important for the ambulance nurses preparation. There where cardiac arrest situations when the work went well, as well as situations where problems arose. The informants expressed that they should practice on LUCAS ™ to a greater extent than they now are doing. Staff in the emergency room, some time was perceived as stressful and they did not listen. The informants expressed frustration with the major administrative tasks after a LUCAS™ case, on the other hand, the "team spirit" where highlighted, they solve the task together.Conclusion: Developments during ambulance missions where LUCAS ™ will be used depends on, alarm data, resources, situation at the scene, planning, roles, supervision, handling of LUCAS ™ and Case Report Form, relatives and viewer reactions, the receipt at the emergency department and finally that ambulance staff cooperates after the LUCAS ™ mission. / Syfte: Syftet var att undersöka ambulanssjuksköterskors upplevelser under ett bestämt ambulansuppdrag som ledde fram till begagnande av LUCAS™. Metod: Deltagande ambulanssjuksköterskor lottades ur en total urvalsgrupp bestående av 12 kvinnor och 39 män. Fem kvinnor och fem män deltog. Kvalitativa intervjuer genomfördes, där Critical Incident Technique metoden användes. Insamlade intervjudata värderades med hjälp av kvalitativ innehållsanalys. Resultat: Intervjutexten kunde delas in i tre domäner, 10 underkategorier kunde identifieras som sorterades i tre kategorier. Slutligen formulerades ett tema. De initiala larmuppgifter från SOS Alarm är viktiga för ambulanssjuksköterskornas förberedelser. Det förekom hjärtstoppssituationer där arbetet gick bra, likväl situationer där problem uppstod. Informanterna uttryckte att de borde öva på LUCAS™ i större utsträckning än de gör i nu läget. Vid en del situationer upplevdes mottagande personal på akutmottagningen som stressade och att de inte lyssnade. Betecknande för informanternas upplevelser vad gäller de administrativa uppgifterna efter LUCAS™ uppdraget var inte positivt, dock betonades "team work". Slutsats: Utvecklingen under ambulansuppdrag där LUCAS™ kommer till användning är beroende av; larmfakta, resurser, situationen på plats, planering, roller, arbetsledning, hanterandet av LUCAS™ och Case Report Form, anhöriga och åskådares reaktioner, mottagandet på akutmottagningen och slutligen att ambulanspersonalen samarbetar efter LUCAS™ uppdraget.

Chest compressions in cardiopulmonary resuscitation are of utmost importance although not without a risk. Many injuries are described but the incidence of these is hard to define due to methodological differences. It is strenuous to perform chest compressions and therefore mechanical chest compressions have been looked upon with interest. This thesis presents new insights on the panorama and incidence of injuries in modern CPR and a comparison of safety and efficacy between manual chest compressions and mechanical chest compressions with the LUCAS™ device. We also evaluated if computed tomography could be an aid in the detection of these injuries. Two pilot trials were conducted and one presented no difference in early survival with 26% and 31% having return of spontaneous circulation when comparing manual chest compressions with the LUCAS device in out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. The other revealed no difference in autopsy-detected injuries. A third multicentre autopsy trial revealed that in patients treated with manual chest compressions 78.3% had at least one injury and 63.9% had at least one rib fracture. The corresponding numbers for patients treated with the LUCAS device was 92.8% (p = 0.002) and 77.7% (p=0.022). Sternal fractures occurred in 54.2% and in 58.3% of the cases treated with manual chest compressions and the LUCAS device respectively (p = 0.556). The median number of rib fractures was 7 in the group receiving manual chest compressions and 6 in the group receiving chest compressions with the LUCAS device. In 31 cases a computed tomography was conducted prior to autopsy and we found a very strong correlation in the discrimination of patients with or without rib fractures (kappa=0.83). Mean difference between the two methods in detecting rib fractures was 0.16. The detection of other injuries did not have a strong correlation. In conclusion there is no difference in early survival between the two methods and mechanical chest compressions adds 14-15% more patients with rib fractures but the amount of rib fractures, sternal fractures and other injuries is equal. CT can aid but not replace autopsies in the detection of these injuries.

No description available.

Pulmonary dysfunction following cardiopulmonary bypass surgery is a widely explored complication and a multitude of factors have been implicated, including but not limited to: operative trauma; the cardiopulmonary bypass circuit; cardioplegia; the type of donor grafts utilised; anaesthesia and fluid administered. There is a paucity of information regarding the effect of cardioplegia on the lungs. No studies have previously investigated whether allowing cold-blood cardioplegic solution to enter the lung parenchyma, during the period of cardioplegia delivery, has an effect on the clinical outcome of lung function following cardiopulmonary bypass surgery. For this reason an original study was done to determine the effect of preventing cardioplegia from entering the lungs, by evacuating overflow of cardioplegia not drained via the atriocaval cannula, by using a pulmonary artery vent. A total of 403 patients admitted to undergo full cardiopulmonary bypass were screened and 142 patients who fitted the criteria for inclusion and provided informed consent took part in this prospective double blind randomised clinical trial. The control group underwent routine cardiopulmonary bypass grafting. The study group had the intervention of a pulmonary artery vent sutured in position at the time the heart was cannulated for bypass. During cardioplegia delivery the cardioplegia was removed via the atriocaval cannula in the control group (A) and via the atriocaval cannula and the pulmonary artery vent in the study group (B). Aside from this difference, the two groups were managed identically intra- and post-operatively. Outcomes which were compared included eight time measures of arterial blood gases; electrolytes and shunt fraction; bedside lung spirometry measures over five time periods; radiographic measures of atelectasis and effusion over three time points; as well as physiotherapy and hospitalisation requirements. Numerous other potentially extraneous variables were measured and compared in order to monitor homogeneity of the study samples. The consistency of the results within each group throughout the study provides strong evidence that the measurements taken were accurate. The use of standardised equipment and vigilant adherence to the protocol ensured no extraneous deviation. The internal validity of this study was therefore good and accurate. The findings of the study however brought into question a previously accepted belief that the pulmonary artery vent prevents the overflow of cardioplegia, not drained from the right atrium, from entering the lungs. There was no literature or previous studies to confirm or dispute this accepted ‘observation’ by cardiac surgeons that the cardioplegia does enter the lung parenchyma. To therefore validate the findings of the study a further four original studies were designed and initiated. The objective of these studies was to establish the efficacy of the pulmonary artery vent and to determine whether cardioplegia indeed circulates through the lung parenchyma or merely accumulates and ‘pools’. Technetium (Tc-99m), a radio labelled isotope was added to the cold blood cardioplegia solution prior to delivery in order to determine this. In the four sub-studies it was confirmed that the pulmonary artery vent is 90-100% effective in retrieving any cardioplegic solution not drained by the atriocaval cannulae, thus confirming the effectiveness of the pulmonary artery vent in preventing cold blood cardioplegic solution from entering the lungs. The findings of the main study confirmed that respiratory impairment after uncomplicated cardiopulmonary bypass, even in low risk patients, is relatively common, as within each group there was a significant change in outcome measures over time. Inter-group comparisons however showed these changes were not significant, with both groups deteriorating by the same degree post-operatively, therefore establishing that these changes were independent of the intervention of the pulmonary artery vent. In the control group, the cold blood cardioplegia solution that did not drain from the atriocaval cannula entered the lungs and circulated the lung parenchyma during cardiopulmonary bypass. The study group made certain that none, or very little, of the cold blood cardioplegia solution entered the lungs. The main findings of this study are therefore that pulmonary function and gas exchange, although markedly reduced following cardiac surgery, are not affected by placement and suctioning via a pulmonary artery vent during the time of cardioplegia delivery intraoperatively. Furthermore, these studies strongly suggest that cold blood cardioplegia solution is innocuous to the lungs / Thesis (M.Med.Sc.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, 2006.

Syfte: Att kartlägga vårdpersonalens kunskapsläge samt utbildningsfrekvens i hjärtlungräddning på ett länssjukhus i Mellansverige, samt beskriva följsamheten till att registrera behandlade hjärtstopp till det svenska hjärt-lungräddningsregistret. Metod: Enkätstudie med kvantitativ ansats bestående av 177 respondenter samt även som en retrospektiv observationsstudie. Huvudresultat: Enskilda personer svarade rätt på alla kunskapsfrågorna men som grupp fanns det brister i kunskapen i hjärtlungräddning. Då man jämförde vårdpersonalens kunskap påvisades att i fyra av sju kunskapsfrågor fanns en signifikant skillnad i kunskap mellan den vårdpersonal som har mer regelbunden utbildning, än den som har mindre. De som hade mer regelbunden utbildning hade flera rätt. En signifikant skillnad påvisades även beroende på när man hade haft sin senaste HLR-utbildning, där de som haft sin utbildning nyligen hade flera rätt. Följsamheten hos vårdpersonalen till att registrera patienter som behandlats för hjärtstopp på sjukhus till det svenska hjärt-lungräddningsregistret, kan sammanfattas med att det brister i rapporteringen. Konklusion: Det är viktigt att skapa förutsättningar för frekventa utbildningar till vårdpersonal för att öka kunskap och beredskap i hjärt- och lungräddning, vilket även kan ses som ett kvalitetssäkringsarbete. Ett förbättringsarbete är nödvändigt för att förbättra följsamheten till registreringen. / Objective: To identify the healthcare professional´s knowledge and training frequency of cardiopulmony resuscitation in a county hospital in central Sweden, and compliance of the Swedish Register of cardiopulmony resuscitation. Method: Survey with quantitative approach consisting of 177 respondents, as well as a retrospective observational study. Main results: Individuals answered correctly to all knowledge questions, but as a group, there were deficiencies in the knowledge of cardiopulmonary resuscitation. When comparing healthcare professional´s knowledge it was demonstrated that in four of the seven knowledge questions it was a significant difference in knowledge between the health professionals who have more regular training than those with fewer. Those who had more regular education had more right answers. A significant difference was also detected depending on when they had their latest CPR training, where those who have had their education more recently also had more right answers. Compliance of healthcare professional´s to register patients treated for cardiac arrest in hospital at the Swedish CPR registry, can be summarized by the deficiencies in reporting. Conclusion: It is important to create conditions for frequent training to health professionals to increase the knowledge and preparedness in CPR, which can also be seen as a quality assurance work. An improvement is necessary in order to improve compliance to registration.

The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of a light-moderate versus hard exercise intensity on health and fitness benefits in a previously sedentary population. Twenty-six subjects, 17 male (mean age 45 + 3 yrs), 9 female (mean age 48 + 3 yrs) with at least one coronary artery disease risk factor volunteered to participate in this study. Subjects underwent laboratory testing comprising of, resting heart rate and blood pressure, body composition, blood lipid analysis and aerobic capacity (V02 ), prior to and 22-32 weeks after participating > 2 days per week in the Adult Physical Fitness Program (APFP) at Ball State University. After an initial exercise prescription subjects self selected an exercise intensity between 40-80% of their maximal heart rate range (MHRR) at which to train. Subjects were then grouped into those who trained at < 60% (light-moderate) and those who trained at > 60% (hard) of their MHRR.Those that self selected a hard training intensity did show a significantly greater decrease in diastolic blood pressure than the light-moderate intensity group. Subjects received a main training effect with a mean decrease in systolic blood pressure (123 ± 2.8 to 119 ± 2.4 mmHg), diastolic blood pressure (78 ± 2.2 to 75 ± 1.7 mmHg), and mean increases for HDL-cholesterol (49 ± 2.5 to 53 ± 2.8 mg/dL), absolute functional capacity (2.676 +.162 to 2.843 +.169 L/min) and relative functional capacity (30.2 ± 1.5 to 32.8 + 1.8 ml/kg/min). In conclusion this study demonstrated health and fitness benefits when training at least 2 days per week with greater effects when training at a hard versus light-moderate intensity with regards to diastolic blood pressure. / School of Physical Education

The aim of the study was to look at the psychomotor skills in cardiopulmonary resuscitation and relate the results to sex, age and type of training. Place of training had three different categories: training at Finnish Red Cross (FRC) courses for general public, training at workplace or training at both places. The study was conducted on 310 trainees on different first aid courses and events in Finland. The psychomotor skills were evaluated by observation with help of a CPR evaluation standardized checklist with 11 moments. Age showed to have an impact on the skills. Age groups 20, 30 and 40 performed the skills better than the age group 50 and above. To explain the difference with anxiety is not likely, as 41.1 % of the trainees informed not to be afraid in a real situation and only 27.8% answered to be or did not know if they would be afraid. More likely the difference can be explained by self confidence to act as well as by the fact that different age groups need different teaching methods. Repeating has also a big role with the competence. Trainees with health care background or active at FRC succeeded to get better results. They also managed better with the essential moments like calling for help and opening the airways. Obvious is that those with 3-6 passed first aid courses managed to get better results than those with 0-2 courses. Motivation to have skills in CPR have an impact when comparing the skills and place where you got the training. All 11 moments right had 43.8% of the trainees who got their training at a FRC course, and 28.0% of those who were trained at workplace. Same difference can be shown when comparing skills with the essential moment, opening the airways. Out of the trainees at FRC courses 89.9% performed it right and 62.7% of trainees at courses at workplaces. When evaluating the skills it is just not enough to look at the right moments, but as well at the crucial, life saving, measures. In order to save more lives by CPR training an essential factor in the training is confidence to intervene in the event as well as repetition together with different teaching methods for different target groups. CPR skill tests are an important tool for the future development of the quality of the teachers. / <p>ISBN 91-7997-096-6</p>

No description available.

Background: The new guidelines for cardiopulmonary resuscitation states that the family should be given the opportunity to be present at the resuscitation of a close relative. A cardiac arrest is an emotional experience for the family. In addition to being part of the resuscitation effort, the nurse also needs to take care of the family. Aim: The aim of this study was to describe nurses' experiences of family presence during resuscitation. Method: A literature review has been made of 13 studies where differences and similarities were analyzed. The articles were published between the years of 2009 – 2013 Result: The nurses' experiences were divided into three categories; Factors that affect family presence, The nurse' experience surrounding the presence of the family, Factors affecting family presence in the resuscitation room. The result showed that, the feeling of confidence, the ability to work under stressful conditions, the reactions of the family and external prerequisites and the presences of a family support person were important. All nurses had unique experiences that influenced their attitudes towards family presence during resuscitation. Conclusion: Every resuscitation is unique and the family's presence should be evaluated. The need for a family support person was identified as an important factor to ease the family's presence. Local protocols should be created that clearly states the decision process and whom become the family support person. Travelbee's nursing theory facilitates the comprehension of the interactions between the family and the nurse.

The purpose of this study was to examine the physiological and psychological responses to linear work rate treadmill and cycle ergometer exercise tests in men and women with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). 12 men and 8 women with COPD completed one treadmill and one cycle cardiopulmonary exercise test (CPET) in randomized order. Before and after each CPET, the particpants completed measures of Self-Efficacy (SE), State-Anxiety, and Arousal. No significant differences were found between the physiological responses to cycle and treadmill CPET in either men or women. SE increased significantly as a result of the first test, regardless of exercise modality and sex. State anxiety was significantly reduced after the first test, whereas there was no significant change in arousal state. In conclusion there were no differences between the physiological and psychological responses to treadmill and cycle CPET in men and women with COPD.