|
The information provided below is designed as a guide for individuals to respond in emergencies, but certainly does not replace the need for adequate training by health care professionals.
Choking
Indications of choking:
- Hands clutched to throat
- Inability to talk
- Difficulty breathing or noisy breathing
- Inability to cough forcefully
- Turning blue
- Loss of consciousness
If you witness someone choking
When you notice these signals in a choking victim, immediately begin first aid. Have someone else call 911 if possible. If you are the only available rescuer present, call 911 after you have delivered assistance.
To deliver first aid to a choking victim, the American Red Cross recommends an approach known as “five and five.”
- Deliver five back blows between the person’s shoulder blades with the heel of your hand.
Perform five abdominal thrusts, also known as the Heimlich maneuver.
Here’s how:
- Stand behind the person. Wrap your arms around the waist.
- Tip the person forward slightly.
- Make a fist with one hand. Position it slightly above the person's navel.
- Grasp the fist with the other hand. Press hard into the abdomen with a quick, upward thrust — as if trying to lift the person up.
- Perform a total of five abdominal thrusts, if needed. If the blockage still isn't dislodged, repeat the "five-and-five" cycle.
- Alternate between five back blows and five thrusts until the blockage is dislodged.
If you are choking and there is no one to help
Obviously you can’t deliver back blows to yourself if you’re choking. However, you can still perform abdominal thrusts to dislodge the item.
Here’s how to perform the Heimlich maneuver on yourself:
- Place a fist slightly above your navel.
- Grasp your fist with the other hand and bend over a hard surface — a countertop or chair will do.
- Shove your fist inward and upward.
Clearing the airway of a pregnant woman or obese person:
- Position your hands a little bit higher than with a normal Heimlich maneuver, at the base of the breastbone, just above the joining of the lowest ribs.
- Proceed as with the Heimlich maneuver, pressing hard into the chest, with a quick thrust.
- Repeat until the food or other blockage is dislodged or the person becomes unconscious.
If you witness an infant choking
- First, clear the airway by assuming a seated position and holding the infant facedown on your forearm, which is resting on your thigh.
- Thump the infant gently but firmly five times on the middle of the back using the heel of your hand. The combination of gravity and the back blows should release the blocking object.
- If this doesn’t work, hold the infant face-up on your forearm with the head lower than the trunk if the above doesn't work. Using two fingers placed at the center of the infant's breastbone, give five quick chest compressions.
- Repeat the back blows and chest thrusts if breathing doesn't resume. Call for emergency medical help.
- Begin infant CPR if one of these techniques opens the airway but the infant doesn't resume breathing.
- If the child is older than age 1, give abdominal thrusts only.
To ensure that you are properly trained and prepared to respond to such emergency situations, enroll in a certified first-aid course.
|
