Is hyperventilation helpful during CPR?
The natural tendency when performing CPR is to ventilate the patient frequently. Contrary to common practice, hyperventilation is very detrimental during CPR. Each extra breath interferes with the development of negative intrathoracic pressure created during the chest wall recoil (or decompression) phase. Thus, hyperventilation, that is, ventilation more often than 10 times/minute, markedly reduces the efficiency of all methods of CPR, with or without the ResQPOD. Hyperventilation during use of the ResQPOD will prevent the intrathoracic pressure levels from going below zero, resulting in diminished venous return to the chest. This is a fundamental point that must be heavily emphasized when training rescuers on how to perform any method of CPR and use the ResQPOD.
