American Red Cross Backs Anti-Choking Devices Like LifeVac
November 19th, 2024 by admin
The American Red Cross made a major step for emergency care - making this the first significant revision in 47 years to endorse the use of devices that help people who are choking.
An obstruction such as food often leads to choking, preventing oxygen from entering the lungs. Without oxygen, brain damage can occur in as little as 4 minutes, & irreversible brain death in as little as 10 minutes.
Approximately 5,000 choking-related deaths occur in the U.S. every year, & 4th leading cause of unintentional death. (ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK499941/ )
Based on recent findings of the American Red Cross Advisory Council (ARC), anti-choking devices like LifeVac are now approved as a protocol for dealing with choking victims.
While the guideline still recommends at first conventional approach for a choking victim with "5 back blows & 5 abdominal thrusts," it now offers an immediate option of using an anti-choking device like LifeVac.
"If standard treatment is not working and not feasible, anti-choking devices may be used for attempted removal of airway obstruction," the ARC protocol states.
The LifeVac device resembles a small plunger, with bellows that attach to a clear face mask placed over the choking person's nose and mouth. The person using the LifeVac pushes the bellows' handles down, then quickly up.
Air is forced out of the sides of the device, which creates a vacuum that sucks the object out of the airway when the lever is immediately pulled back again. LifeVac says this replicates a forced cough to suction the object out of the choking person's throat.
Currently 3,119 lives have been saved with LifeVac, and currently used in 22 countries around the world.
The ARC Advisory Council tested the apparatus in 500 trials and found that the LifeVac had a "94% dislodgement success rate during the first attempt, 99.6% for the second attempt, and 100% for the third attempt."
Arthur Lih, founder and CEO of LifeVac, applauds the decision of the ARC to recommend the choking device.
"This update provides EMS and EMT personnel with advanced tools to save more lives, while also marking a significant step forward for individuals with disabilities, who now have an option in choking emergencies — something that was previously unavailable to this vulnerable group.”
"...We look forward to seeing LifeVac in every institution and home, with the goal of ending the 5,000 choking deaths that occur each year," he said.
The Technology Depot is a proud authorized distributor for LifeVac since 2021.
Posted in: News