Sunday 19 February 2012

Self CPR

What are you to do if you have a heart attackWhile you are alone.
If you've already received this,
It means people care about you.
The Johnson CityMedicalCenter staff actually
Discovered this and did an in-depth study
On it in our ICU.
The two individuals that discovered this then did
An article on it, had it published and have had it incorporated into ACLS and CPR classes.
It is very true and has and does work.
It is called Cough CPR.
A cardiologist says it's the truth,
If everyone who gets this sends it to 10 people,
You can bet that we'll save at least one life.
It could save your life!
Let's say it's 6:15 p.m. And you're driving home
(alone of course), after an usually hard day on the job.
You're really tired, upset and frustrated.
Suddenly you start experiencing severe pain
In your chest that starts to radiate out
Into your arm and up into your jaw.
You are only about five miles from the hospital
Nearest your home.
Unfortunately you don't know if you'll be
Able to make it that far.
What can you do?
You've been trained in CPR
But the guy that taught the course didn't tell
You what to do if it happened to yourself.
Since many people are alone when they suffer a heart attack, this article seemed to be in order.
Without help, the person whose heart is beating improperly and who begins to feel faint,
Has only about 10 seconds left before losing consciousness.
However, these victims can help themselves by coughing repeatedly and very vigorously.
A deep breath should be taken before each
Cough, and the cough must be deep
And prolonged, as when producing sputum
From deep inside the chest.
A breath and a cough must be repeated
About every two seconds without let up
Until help arrives, or until the heart is felt to be beating normally again.
Deep breaths get oxygen into the lungs and coughing movements squeeze the heart and
Keep the blood circulating.
The squeezing pressure on the heart also helps it regain normal rhythm. In this way, heart attack victims can get to a hospital.

Wednesday 8 February 2012

Advantages of Off Pump Surgery or Beating Heart Surgery.

What are the Advantages of Off-Pump Coronary Bypass Surgery (OPCAB)?

An alternative to traditional CABG is off-pump or beating heart surgery, where surgeons don't use the heart-lung machine. The procedure is also called OPCAB (Off-Pump Coronary Artery Bypass). The surgeons sew the bypasses onto the heart while it continues beating. Various types of heart stabilizers are used to restrain the heart one section at a time so the surgeon can operate on it. The chest is opened through a midline sternotomy incision. After the target coronary vessel is exposed and stabilized, it is occluded and opened. A bridging plastic tube -- which allows blood flow during suturing -- may be placed. The bypass graft is then sutured to the coronary artery.
The potential benefits/advantages of off-pump surgery may include the following:
  • Reduced need for blood transfusions
  • Reduced risk of bleeding, stroke and kidney failure
  • Potential for reduced psychomotor and cognitive problems
High-risk patients with additional diseases like lung disease, kidney failure and peripheral vascular disease may benefit from this kind of operation

Off-Pump Surgery