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CHICAGO, Jan 18, 2005 (United Press International via COMTEX) -- Two studies, one in the United States and one in Europe, found hospital personnel need improvement in giving cardio-pulmonary resuscitation.
University of Chicago researchers used new technology to monitor how well-trained hospital staff comply with established guidelines for CPR.
Both studies, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, found the chest compressions during CPR were often too slow, too shallow and too frequently interrupted and ventilation rates are usually too high.
"CPR has been around for 50 years but until now we haven't had a precise, reliable way to assess how well it's being done," said study author Dr. Lance Becker.
The second study, by Dr. Lars Wik of Ulleval University Hospital, Oslo, Norway, examined the performance of paramedics and nurse anesthetists during out-of-hospital advanced cardiac life support in three European cities and found even greater deviation from the guidelines -- suggesting the problem is endemic.
Copyright 2005 by United Press International.
