When a young child can’t breathe, emergency responders often use a hand-operated ventilation mask to push air into the child’s lungs en route to the hospital. But using these devices optimally on a child requires precise technical skills — giving the right amount of air, pumping at the proper speed and keeping a tight seal with the patient’s face — that are difficult for emergency workers to master and maintain, given that childhood breathing emergencies are rare.
Now, WashU Medicine researchers have found that a digital device that provides instant feedback significantly improves how emergency responders use hand-operated breathing masks, providing a potentially promising solution for a high-risk situation involving children who aren’t breathing.
The study included 123 paramedics and emergency medical technicians working across five agencies in three U.S. metropolitan areas. WashU Medicine’s Joseph D. Finney, MD, an assistant professor of pediatrics, was the study’s first author, working with Jeff Siegler, MD, an associate professor of emergency medicine, and Fahd A. Ahmad, MD, a professor of pediatrics.
Read more on the Inside WashU Medicine website.
