SummaryEffective chest compression is an important factor playing a key role in the cardiac arrest patient survival. An understanding of the factors causing an early physical fatigue can help to improve the quality of CPR operations in hospitals. Therefore, this study aimed to assess the factors relevant to the onset time of physical fatigue and resuscitation quality during cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) provision by Iranian nurses.The present cross-sectional study was performed on 194 subjects selected based on a stratified random sampling procedure from different hospital wards. The participants were required to perform CPR operations on a manikin. As they were performing CPR, the time and the quality of compressions were measured by a chronometer and visual analogue fatigue scale, respectively. The rescuers themselves reported the onset time of physical fatigue.Statistical analyses run on the collected data revealed that the majority of participants experienced extreme physical fatigue after a two-minute CPR operation. Moreover, about 71.2% of the participants managed to provide compressions over five centimeters deep. Finally, the physical fatigue experienced by the participants was meaningfully correlated with the body weight, sex, university degree, and work place of the participants (p < 0.05). Since the findings of the present study showed that various factors including the sex, weight, height, university degree, and the work place of the rescuer were significantly correlated with the onset time of physical fatigue experienced during CPR operation, it is recommended that male nurses with greater height and weight be employed in the rescue teams in ICU wards. Moreover, it seems mandatory for the nurses currently working in such teams in hospitals to improve their physical fitness through doing aerobics on a regular basis so that they may experience less fatigue during their CPR operations in future.
References
1.
Russo SG, Neumann P, Reinhardt S, Timmermann A, Niklas A, Quintel M, et al. Impact of physical fitness and biometric data on the quality of external chest compression: a randomised, crossover trial. BMC Emergency Medicine. 2011;11(1).
2.
Foo NP, Chang JH, Lin HJ, Guo HR. Rescuer fatigue and cardiopulmonary resuscitation positions: A randomized controlled crossover trial. Resuscitation. 2010;81(5):579–84.
3.
Riera SQ, González BS, Álvarez JT, Fernández M del MF, Saura JM. The physiological effect on rescuers of doing 2min of uninterrupted chest compressions. Resuscitation. 2007;74(1):108–12.
4.
Heidenreich JW, Berg RA, Higdon TA, Ewy GA, Kern KB, Sanders AB. Rescuer Fatigue: Standard versus Continuous Chest-Compression Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation. Academic Emergency Medicine. 2006;13(10):1020–6.
5.
Bjørshol CA, Sunde K, Myklebust H, Assmus J, Søreide E. Decay in chest compression quality due to fatigue is rare during prolonged advanced life support in a manikin model. Scandinavian Journal of Trauma, Resuscitation and Emergency Medicine. 2011;19(1):46.
6.
Abella BS. Quality of Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation During In-Hospital Cardiac Arrest. JAMA. 2005;293(3):305.
7.
Krikscionaitiene A, Stasaitis K, Dambrauskiene M, Dambrauskas Z, Vaitkaitiene E, Dobozinskas P, et al. Can lightweight rescuers adequately perform CPR according to 2010 resuscitation guideline requirements? Emergency Medicine Journal. 2013;30(2):159–60.
8.
Uhm DC, Jun MH, Hwang JY, Choi JY. Knowledge According to Learning Experiences of CPR for Health Occupation College Students. The Journal of Korean Academic Society of Nursing Education. 2008;14(1):138–46.
9.
Berg RA, Hemphill R, Abella BS, Aufderheide TP, Cave DM, Hazinski MF, et al. Part 5: Adult Basic Life Support. Circulation. 2010;122(18_suppl_3).
The statements, opinions and data contained in the journal are solely those of the individual authors and contributors and not of the publisher and the editor(s). We stay neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
