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Politics : Just the Facts, Ma'am: A Compendium of Liberal Fiction -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: DavesM who wrote (31600)	4/2/2005 5:25:18 PM
From: Lazarus_Long	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 90947

(there's a waste of CPR training). CPR can to some extent compensate for loss of heartbeat and the breathing reflex. It CANNOT correct hypokalemia, the medical condition she is supposed to have. emedicine.com Untreated, hypokalemia is often fatal. And that treatment requires a hospital. Also, there is a limited window after its start during which it must be corrected or permanent irreversible brain damage will occur. And that is REGARDLESS of CPR. I have not seen a case of hypokalemia. I have seen its close relative, hyponatremia. Believe me, it is NOT a diagnosis you want to hear from a doc in an ER.

To: DavesM who wrote (31600)	4/3/2005 7:07:10 AM
From: Lady Lurksalot	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 90947

DavesM, All, I think it is probably easy to pontificate when one has not been personally involved with someone such as Terri Schiavo or has not been on the firing line. Here's something from my critical-care listserv: "CPR does not enter into this to my understanding. If he simply said NO CPR, it might be a lot easier for me to digest. I understood you to say DO NOT RESUSCITATE. that is a radically different proposition. NO CPR might be more believable since CPR is pretty worthless and yield's a very high probability of PVS rather than resuscitation." When I worked in hospitals in California, everyone from the janitor on up had to know how to do CPR. Whether it was a county or a state law, I do not remember. In our classes, we were taught that even if CPR is done 100% correctly, it is only 30% effective. Oh yeah, CPR can and does break bones, even when done properly. Another thing about CPR: Performing it requires surprising effort and upper-body strength and is quickly physically exhausting. We always commandeered the biggest, burliest person we could find to perform the actual CPR. I was never very good at performing CPR but always got 100% on my written tests. It's been so long now, I would not trust myself to perform CPR on anyone--if I ever did. When a patient was brought in in cardiopulmonary arrest, I went off to make coffee--my highest and best use under the circumstances. <g> - Holly