Análise crítica das novas recomendações para reanimação cardiopulmonar / The new guidelines for cardiopulmonary resuscitation: a critical analysis

OBJETIVO: Descrever as novas recomendações da American Heart Association (AHA), baseado em evidências científicas organizadas pelo Comitê Internacional de Reanimação, endossado e disseminado por entidades norte-americanas e européias. FONTES DOS DADOS: Os guias para suporte básico e avançado de vida em pediatria publicados nas revistas Circulation em novembro de 2005 foram revisados, bem como as subseqüentes publicações sobre o mesmo tópico usando as palavras-chave cardiac arrest, basic life support, advanced life support, cardiopulmonary resuscitation e pediatric resuscitation, através dos métodos de busca PubMed e MEDLINE. SíNTESE DOS DADOS: As maiores alterações foram na área de suporte básico de vida. O novo guia enfatiza a relação compressão torácica/ventilação para os profissionais da saúde treinados, que passa a ser 15:2 em todas as idades, exceto neonatos. É ressaltada a importância das compressões torácicas fortes e rápidas e a necessidade de se evitar a hiperventilação durante e após a parada cardiorrespiratória. O uso de megadoses de adrenalina foi retirado, bem como outras orientações. CONCLUSÃO: O guia mais recente de reanimação em pediatria da AHA tem como foco principal o atendimento básico pré-hospitalar. Está baseado na melhor evidência científica disponível, porém futuras pesquisas são necessárias para corroborar essas mudanças e trazer novas evidências para os futuros protocolos.

OBJECTIVE: To describe the new American Heart Association (AHA) guidelines for pediatric life support, based on the scientific evidence evaluated by the International Liaison Committee on Resuscitation, and endorsed and disseminated by North American resuscitation councils. SOURCES: The guidelines for basic and advanced life support published in Circulation in November 2005 were reviewed together with subsequent publications on the same topics, identified in PubMed and MEDLINE using the keywords cardiac arrest, basic life support, advanced life support, cardiopulmonary resuscitation and pediatric resuscitation. SUMMARY OF THE FINDINGS: The greatest guideline changes are in the area of basic life support. The new guidelines emphasize the new chest compression/ventilation ratio for trained health professionals, which is now 15:2 for all children except neonates. Also emphasized is the need for harder and faster chest compressions, and the need to avoid hyperventilation during and after cardiorespiratory arrest. The use of high-dose epinephrine has been removed, as have some other previous recommendations. CONCLUSIONS: The most recent AHA guidelines for pediatric resuscitation are focused primarily on basic life support care. They are based on the best available scientific evidence, although further research is required to validate these changes and provide new evidence for future guidelines.

Foreign body in children's airways

OBJECTIVE: To determine the clinical characteristics and the results of bronchoscopic treatment of children due to foreign body aspiration in a university hospital. METHOD: Time series of children who underwent bronchoscopies for foreign bodies aspirated into the airway between March 1993 and July 2002. Each patient was analyzed for age, sex, initial clinical diagnosis, nature and location of the foreign body, duration of symptoms between aspiration and bronchoscopy, radiological findings, results of bronchoscopic removal, complications of bronchoscopy and presence of foreign bodies in the airways. RESULTS: Thirty-four children, 20 (59 percent) boys, ages ranging from nine months to nine years (median = 23 months). In 32 (94 percent) children the foreign body was removed by rigid bronchoscope, and two resulted in thoracotomy. Foreign bodies were more frequent in children under three years of age (66 percent). A clinical history of foreign body inhalation was obtained in 27 (80 percent) cases. Most of the foreign bodies removed were organic (65 percent) and more frequently found in the right bronchial tree (59 percent). Foreign bodies were removed within 24 hours in 18 (53 percent) cases. The most frequent radiographic findings were: unilateral air trapping, atelectasis and radiopac foreign body. Major bronchoscopy complications occurred in seven children (22 percent), and there were no deaths. CONCLUSIONS: More attention is necessary to the respiratory symptoms of aspirations, mainly in boys at early ages, with clinical history and compatible radiological findings. Most foreign bodies removed were of organic nature. In this case series, therapeutic rigid bronchoscopy was effective with few complications.