New CPR tool

[sarmed1]

slightly to the left of normal CAP topics, but based on the number of EMS types here I thought I'd share a bit.
http://www.physio-control.com/products/cpr-assist-devices/product-detail.aspx?id=886

So yesterday I put this thing on my truck and presto today I got a chance to use it.
A very interesting experience....its basically a suplied air/pneumatic CPR compression unit.
(for those of you in the old school EMS world similar to the thumper of years ago)

Anyone else out there using it?

It was very useful for freeing up a set of hands to handle other cardiac arrest tasks, but I found it to be a PITA that despite the way it seemed to hol dtight to the manikin, It wouldnt really seem to stay centered on the chest, I would have a good CPR wave on the monitor then look up to see it pretty much minimal, re-adjust the Lucas and good to go again.  Other than that and its seems really noisy and violent, but looks like it works well.


mk

[fyrfitrmedic]

 That definitely looks like "Son of Thumper". I hated setting up the Thumper but found it really came in handy when I worked rural EMS ages ago.

Any studies pro/con on this yet?

[DC]

I saw an article on EMS Responder on this a few months back, it seemed pretty interesting.

Rather than a piston it seems to be more of a belt that contracts around the chest.

[flyerthom]

We're not using either but I've seen the Zoll Geezer Squeezer before. It seemed be a big help. I wonder how one would work in an A Star 350 - a rather cramped helicopter for EMS.

[fyrfitrmedic]

 There was a bunch of negative buzz about the Zoll squeezer a while back, as well as some questions regarding the studies run by Zoll on the Autopulse in contrast with outside studies.

[sarmed1]

What I got in my training time was that the data on the Lucas is better than the Zoll but nothing profoundly better than good old CPR...I guess the bonus would be that its constant, non interupted (in theory) and not decreased in the force of contracction by things like fatigue.

mk

[fyrfitrmedic]

What I got in my training time was that the data on the Lucas is better than the Zoll but nothing profoundly better than good old CPR...I guess the bonus would be that its constant, non interupted (in theory) and not decreased in the force of contracction by things like fatigue.

mk

I think that absence of interruption and consistency of compression combined is the key, based on the research that's come out re: compressions in the past year or so.

[SJFedor]

We're not using either but I've seen the Zoll Geezer Squeezer before. It seemed be a big help. I wonder how one would work in an A Star 350 - a rather cramped helicopter for EMS.

Hm I dunno. It seems like every arrest I've seen roll through the door over the past year, with 1 exception, were patients >300lbs.  I doubt the patients would even fit in a deathstar A-Star, let alone w/ that device strapped to them.

I'm gonna hafta ask around. I think Metro Nashville used the Zoll squeezer briefly (demo perhaps?) but no one was a real big fan of it.