What is the order for performing CPR?

What is the order for performing CPR?

• A. Compression, airway, breathing.
• B. Airway, breathing, compression
• C. Breathing, compression, airway
• D. Compression, breathing, airway

Answer: (A)

In CPR, getting blood moving to vital organs is the top priority, so the sequence starts with chest compressions, then you open the airway, and finally you deliver breaths. Starting with compressions keeps oxygenated blood circulating to the brain and heart right away; without that circulation, rescue breaths won’t effectively oxygenate tissues because there isn’t enough blood being pumped to carry the oxygen. After compressions begin, you open the airway and provide breaths, typically two breaths after every set of about 30 compressions for an adult, continuing the cycle until help arrives or an AED is ready to be used. If the airway were opened or breaths given before compressions, precious time would be spent delaying circulation, which is why this order is preferred. In two-person CPR, one person focuses on compressions while the other prepares to ventilate after the compressions have started, maintaining the same principle of prioritizing circulation first.

In CPR, getting blood moving to vital organs is the top priority, so the sequence starts with chest compressions, then you open the airway, and finally you deliver breaths. Starting with compressions keeps oxygenated blood circulating to the brain and heart right away; without that circulation, rescue breaths won’t effectively oxygenate tissues because there isn’t enough blood being pumped to carry the oxygen. After compressions begin, you open the airway and provide breaths, typically two breaths after every set of about 30 compressions for an adult, continuing the cycle until help arrives or an AED is ready to be used. If the airway were opened or breaths given before compressions, precious time would be spent delaying circulation, which is why this order is preferred. In two-person CPR, one person focuses on compressions while the other prepares to ventilate after the compressions have started, maintaining the same principle of prioritizing circulation first.