Adapting evaluation method of skills acquisition in basic cardiopulmonary resuscitation among year 5 and year 6 primary school pupils during the COVID-19 lockdown: a pilot study.

OBJECTIVE: This longitudinal descriptive study aimed to evaluate cognitive skills acquisition in basic Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (bCPR) among a group of Year 5 and Year 6 primary school pupils. The study made use of online tools due to the impossibility of conventional methods during the COVID-19 lockdown. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Pupils received formal training in bCPR. Training was imparted uniformly by a teacher at the school (qualified in Basic Life Support -BLS- and Advanced Life Support -ALS- training by the CPR National Plan). The skills acquired (those proposed as essential for bCPR training by the European Resuscitation Council) were evaluated fifteen weeks later. Skills acquisition was evaluated by means of an online questionnaire developed specifically for the study. RESULTS: In all the cognitive skills included in bCPR training, the acquisition level achieved was over 65%. Acquisition of knowledge of the anatomical areas at which cardiac massage must be applied and the means of emergency systems activation was high, while 25.5% of pupils knew the order in which maneuvers should be performed. Pupils' self-confidence and self-perception of their capacity to act when faced with a real CPR situation increased significantly. CONCLUSIONS: Primary school pupils learned all the cognitive skills involved in bCPR, showing high levels of skills acquisition and positive self-perception of their capacity to apply them.

[Teaching basic life support to the general population. Alumni intervention analysis]. / Enseñando soporte vital básico a la población general. Análisis de las intervenciones de los alumnos.

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to investigate the rate at which the alumni of basic life support courses witnessed and intervened in out-of-hospital emergency situations, and to identify the variables characterizing those alumni associated with a greater number of witnessing events and interventions. An analysis of the efficiency of the courses was also carried out. DESIGN: A descriptive, cross-sectional study was made. SETTING: A district in the province of Almería (Spain). PATIENTS: Alumni of a mass basic life support training program targeted to the general population «Plan Salvavidas¼ conducted between 2003-2009. INTERVENTIONS: In 2010 the alumni were administered a telephone survey asking whether they had witnessed an emergency situation since attending the program, with the collection of information related to this emergency situation. MAIN VARIABLES OF INTEREST: Rate of out-of-hospital emergencies witnessed by the alumni. Rate of intervention of the alumni in emergency situations. Variables characterizing alumni with a greater likelihood of witnessing an emergency situation. RESULTS: A total of 3,864 trained alumni were contacted by telephone. Of 1,098 respondents, 63.9% were women, and the mean age was 26.61±10.6 years. Of these alumni, 11.75% had witnessed emergency situations, an average of three years after completing the course. Of these emergencies, 23.3% were identified as cardiac arrest. The alumni intervened in 98% of the possible cases. In 63% of the cases, there was no connection between the alumni and the victim. The majority of the emergency situations occurred in the street and in public spaces. A greater likelihood of witnessing an emergency situation was associated with being a healthcare worker and with being over 18 years of age. CONCLUSIONS: The rate of out-of-hospital emergencies witnessed by these alumni after the course was 11.75%. The level of intervention among the alumni was high. The most efficient target population consisted of healthcare workers.

[Managing the post-cardiac arrest syndrome. Directing Committee of the National Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation Plan (PNRCP) of the Spanish Society for Intensive Medicine, Critical Care and Coronary Units (SEMICYUC)]. / Manejo del síndrome posparada cardíaca. Comité Directivo del Plan Nacional de Resuscitación Cardiopulmonary de la SEMICYUC (Sociedad Española de Medicina Intensiva, Crítica y Unidades Coronarias).

Since the advent of cardiopulmonary resuscitation more than 40 years ago, we have achieved a return to spontaneous circulation in a growing proportion of patients with cardiac arrest. Nevertheless, most of these patients die in the first few days after admission to the intensive care unit (ICU), and this situation has not improved over the years. Mortality in these patients is mainly associated to brain damage. Perhaps recognizing that cardiopulmonary resuscitation does not end with the return of spontaneous circulation but rather with the return of normal brain function and total stabilization of the patient would help improve the therapeutic management of these patients in the ICU. In this sense, the term cardiocerebral resuscitation proposed by some authors might be more appropriate. The International Liaison Committee on Resuscitation recently published a consensus document on the "Post-Cardiac Arrest Syndrome" and diverse authors have proposed that post-arrest care be integrated as the fifth link in the survival chain, after early warning, early cardiopulmonary resuscitation by witnesses, early defibrillation, and early advanced life support. The therapeutic management of patients that recover spontaneous circulation after cardiopulmonary resuscitation maneuvers based on life support measures and a series of improvised actions based on "clinical judgment" might not be the best way to treat patients with post-cardiac arrest syndrome. Recent studies indicate that using goal-guided protocols to manage these patients including therapeutic measures of proven efficacy, such as inducing mild therapeutic hypothermia and early revascularization, when indicated, can improve the prognosis considerably in these patients. Given that there is no current protocol based on universally accepted evidence, the Steering Committee of the National Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation Plan of the Spanish Society of Intensive Medicine and Cardiac Units has elaborated this document after a thorough review of the literature and an online discussion involving all the members of the committee and a consensus meeting with the aim of providing a platform for the development of local protocols in different ICSs in our country to fit their own means and characteristics.

Peripartum cardiomyopathy: a case series.

OBJECTIVES: We describe our experience with peripartum cardiomyopathy. DESIGN AND SETTING: A case series in intensive care units (ICU) of a district hospital and a referral center. PATIENTS: Six patients who required admission to an ICU after the onset of peripartum cardiomyopathy. RESULTS: Five of the six patients survived, with total recovery of ventricular function. After 1 year of follow-up all five survivors were symptom free with a normal ventricular function. CONCLUSIONS: There is a low rate of ICU admissions for peripartum cardiomyopathy, which has a potentially fatal prognosis. However, this disease can be detected by echocardiography among patients without the semiology.