Cardiac Arrest In Pregnant Women: How Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) Can Save Your And Your Baby's Lives
Posted on: 12 January 2016
The mortality rate among pregnant women is far less than it was 100 years ago with cardiac arrest now affecting fewer than one in 20,000 pregnant women. But while it's not something you want to think about, cardiac arrest in pregnancy still occurs. When it does occur, it often happens during labor and delivery. Delivering CPR immediately after a woman falls unconscious and has no palpable pulse in the carotid or femoral artery improves the survival rates and neurologic outcomes for mother and baby both.
You are at higher risk for cardiac arrest during pregnancy if you:
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Become pregnant at a later age
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Have preexisting chronic health problems, including cardiac disease, that pregnancy makes worse
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Hemorrhage or bleed excessively during childbirth
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Experience pulmonary or amniotic fluid embolism
Left Uterine Displacement
If you go into cardiac arrest during pregnancy, left lateral uterine displacement allows for more effective chest compressions to increase blood flow and cardiac output. A rescuer or trained medical professional will place you in an inclined left lateral position to relieve pressure that your enlarged uterus puts on the large vein that returns blood to the heart.
When a Cardiff resuscitation wedge is not available, a person administering CPR outside of a medical facility can use a pillow or cushion to wedge you into an inclined position (up to a 30 degree angle) if you require basic life support. Placing a rolled blanket under your right hip and lower back or tilting you onto a person's knees will do the same to relieve the pressure of your uterus pressing against larger blood vessels.
Delivering Your Baby
If your heart stops beating while you are in labor, the medical team present will take steps to deliver the baby by cesarean section within 5 minutes of cardiac arrest. Getting your baby out quickly not only improves his or her chance of survival but also increases the chances that you will survive. Delivering the baby relieves pressure on the inferior vena cava and gets blood flowing to your heart and other vital organs. An empty uterus also makes it easier to compress your chest and ventilate your lungs.
Resuscitation Drugs
If the situation calls for drug intervention, the medical team can administer the same drugs that it would give a patient who wasn't pregnant. Although some health care providers worry that administering the drugs may be potentially harmful to the fetus, most accept that using all means they can to revive you helps your baby too. After all, when you heart stops beating, so does the heart of your unborn baby.
For more information, contact an obstetrician in your area.
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