Heart Association Renews Call for CP...(rdiac arrest Abella said. Dr. Mohamud...),Health

Dr. Mohamud Daya, an associate professor of emergency medicine at Oregon Health & Science University, thinks other barriers need to be overcome before more people will be willing to give CPR.

"One of the areas that the position paper fails to address has to do with the current form of CPR that is being taught," Daya said. "The current method is complex and involves several steps that may not be easy to learn or remember."

Findings from Arizona suggested that the chest compressions-only form of CPR is easier to learn than the traditional method of mouth-to-mouth ventilation and chest compressions, Daya said. "The State of Arizona moved to teaching its citizens chest compression-only CPR a few years ago, and it will be interesting to see if this improves the bystander CPR rates and also survival," he said.

More information

To learn more about CPR, visit the American Heart Association.

SOURCES: Benjamin S. Abella, M.D., clinical research director, Center for Resuscitation Science, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia; Mohamud Daya, M.D., associate professor, emergency medicine, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland; Jan. 14, 2008, Circulation, online