Abstract 240: Comparison of Hemodynamics Generated by Synchronized and Interposed Compressions During Treatment of Pseudo Electro-mechanical Dissociation

Abstract

Introduction: Pseudo electro-mechanical dissociation (P-EMD) is a cardiac arrest variant characterized by a life-threatening reduction in cardiac output in the presence of organized electrical activity. Synchronization of chest compressions to the R-wave in the ECG may be preferable to the delivery of standard CPR. However, in the bradycardic P-EMD state, synchronization may result in inadequate blood flow due to the low compression/heart rate. This pilot study examined the hemodynamic effect of interposing additional chest compressions between synchronized chest compressions during bradycardic P-EMD to increase the compression rate. Methods: P-EMD was induced via hypoxia in three female swine (~30 kg) and treated with synchronized compressions until the onset of asystole (HR<12 BPM). Interposed compressions were added when the heart rate fell below 60 BPM. A chest compression was classified as synchronized or interposed depending on the presence or absence of a co-incident R-wave. Hemodynamic parameters were integrated or averaged over each compression interval. Results: Synchronized compressions tended to produce larger aortic pressures, larger carotid blood flows, and lower right atrial pressures than interposed compressions. Data from one experiment are shown in Figure 1. The relative hemodynamic benefit of a synchronized chest compression appears to depend on the effectiveness of the underlying heart contraction. The interposed chest compressions generated forward carotid blood flow and increased the compression rate during bradycardia. Discussion: During bradycardic P-EMD, synchronized compressions may generate better hemodynamics than interposed compressions, and the combination of synchronized and interposed compressions may result in more blood flow than the delivery of synchronized compressions alone. Figure 1. Comparison of hemodynamics generated by synchronized compressions (blue) and interposed compressions (red).