Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) is an emergency first aid protocol for a victim of cardiac arrest.

It can be performed by trained lay persons or by healthcare or emergency response professionals.

It is normally begun on an unbreathing unconscious person and continued until action can be taken to restart the heart or otherwise diagnose the problem.

CPR essentially consists of a pattern of chest compressions and rescue breaths (i.e.

artificial blood circulation and lung ventilation) and is intended to maintain a trickle of oxygenated blood to the brain and the heart and thereby extend the otherwise brief window of opportunity for successfully restarting the heart without permanent brain damage.

CPR itself is not intended to restart the heart but must be performed continuously until medical responders can attempt to restart the heart by other means..

For more information about the topic CPR, read the full article at Wikipedia.org, or see the following related articles:

Cardiac arrest — A cardiac arrest is the cessation of normal circulation of the blood due to failure of the ventricles of the heart to contract effectively during ...  > read more

Defibrillation — Defibrillation is a medical technique used to counter the onset of ventricular fibrillation, (VF) a common cause of cardiac arrest, and pulseless ...  > read more

Hyperthermia — Hyperthermia (hyperpyrexia), in its advanced state referred to as heat stroke or sunstroke, is an acute condition which occurs when the body produces ...  > read more

Oxygen therapy — Oxygen therapy is the administration of oxygen as a therapeutic modality. Oxygen therapy benefits the patient by increasing the supply of oxygen to ...  > read more

Related Stories

Continuous Chest Compression-CPR Improved Cardiac Arrest Survival in Arizona (November 15, 2009) — The chance of surviving a cardiac arrest outside a hospital was found to be twice as high when bystanders performed continuous chest compressions without mouth-to-mouth breathing than when bystanders ...  > read more

Hands-Only CPR Simplifies Saving Lives For Bystanders (April 2, 2008) — Chest compressions alone, or Hands-Only Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation, can save lives and can be used to help an adult who suddenly collapses, according to a new American Heart Association scientific ...  > read more

Cardiac Arrest: Chest Compressions Alone Work Better, Studies Suggest (January 4, 2008) — Two large-scale studies report that the chances of surviving cardiac arrest are no better -- and may be worse -- when bystanders perform mouth-to-mouth breathing than if they press on the chest ...  > read more

CPR Instructions Should Focus On Continuous Chest Compressions, UT Southwestern Physicians Recommend (July 3, 2005) — Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) instructions given over the phone by emergency dispatchers to lay rescuers should focus primarily on continuous chest compressions instead of the traditional ABC's ...  > read more

New Resuscitation Approach Better Than CPR For Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest (November 13, 2006) — New data show that in cases of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest, interrupting chest compressions for anything -- including mouth-to-mouth ventilations -- appears to be detrimental. Cardiocerebral ...  > read more

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