Stories about “Cough CPR” or “How to Survive a Heart Attack When Alone” have been circulating on the Internet. What is the American Red Cross position on this issue?
The American Red Cross does not endorse the “How to Survive A Heart Attack When Alone” coughing technique that is being publicized on the Internet. The American Red Cross develops materials from the consensus of medical opinion such as the National Academy of Sciences, the American Heart Association’s Emergency Cardiac Care Committee, the American Academy of Pediatrics, and the American College of Emergency Physicians. The 1992 Guidelines for Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation and Emergency Cardiac Care and the Guidelines 2000 for Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation and Emergency Cardiovascular Care – International Consensus on Science briefly discuss the technique called Cough CPR . Cough CPR is a self-administered form of cardiopulmonary resuscitation described by CM Criley in 1976 . According to Criley, self-initiated CPR is possible; however, its use is limited to clinical situations in which the patient has a cardiac monitor, the arrest is recognized before loss of consciousness, and the pat
