AHA Releases New CPR/ECC Guidelines

PRESS RELEASE

The American Heart Association has released its updated 2020 guidelines for cardiopulmonary resuscitation and emergency cardiovascular care. The seven-part series was published through the journal Circulation on October 21.

The 2020 guidelines “reflect the latest global resuscitation science and treatment recommendations derived from the 2020 International Consensus on CPR and ECC with Treatment Recommendations,” the AHA said in announcing the release. The AHA guideline is considered the gold standard of clinical recommendations in the practice of resuscitation science.

Highlights of the new guidelines include:

• Updated CPR guidelines that recognize health disparities and the management of opioid-related emergencies;
• Expansion of the Chain of Survival to include a recovery link, which emphasizes the physical, social, and emotional needs of patients and their caregivers post-hospital;
• Suggestions on ways to increase the delivery of CPR by lay rescuers, including the use of mobile technology to recruit trained lay persons to assist with CPR rescues.

The new recovery link in the Chain of Survival highlights the need for treatment, surveillance, and rehabilitation of cardiac arrest survivors and their caregivers.

Recommendations important to this concept include structured assessment for anxiety, depression, posttraumatic stress, and fatigue for both groups; rehabilitation assessment and treatment for physical, neurologic, cardiopulmonary, and cognitive impairments before discharge from the hospital; and comprehensive multidisciplinary discharge planning, including medical and rehabilitative treatment recommendations and return to activity/work expectations.

“The 2020 guidelines represent a synthesis of important science that guides how resuscitation is provided for critically ill patients,” said Raina Merchant, MD, MSHP, FAHA, chair of the AHA’s Emergency Cardiovascular Care Committee. “As the science evolves over time, it’s important that we review it and make recommendations about how providers can deliver high-quality care that reflects the most updated and state-of-the-art information.”

The guidelines offer suggestions for increasing lay rescuer CPR rates, noting that currently less than 40% of nonhospitalized adults experiencing cardiac arrest receive lay person-initiated CPR before the arrival of EMS. Some of the new or updated suggestions include raising awareness of the need for lay persons to initiate CPR, underscoring that the risk of harm to the patient is low; use of mobile phone technology to increase the rate of bystander CPR and AED use; and bystander CPR training that targets socioeconomic, racial, and ethnic populations that have historically exhibited lower rates of bystander CPR.

Overall, the 2020 guidelines outline 491 recommendations specific to adult, pediatric and neonatal life support, resuscitation education science, and systems of care.

The guidelines were last updated in 2015, at which point the process of the five-year update transitioned to an online format using a continuous evidence evaluation process rather than periodic reviews to increase the potential for more immediate transitions and updates. The 2020 document reflects alignment with the International Liaison Committee on Resuscitation (ILCOR) and associated ILCOR member councils.

Digital Portfolio

For the first time ever, the latest resuscitation science will be reflected in new high-quality CPR programs released simultaneously, bringing science to life in the form of a new digital resuscitation portfolio. The programs are rooted in the True Adaptive learning design that delivers personalized instruction tailored to individual needs and knowledge levels. Developed in collaboration with Area9 Lyceum, a global leader in adaptive learning, the new digital solutions are delivered by RQI Partners, a partnership between and service provider for the association and Laerdal Medical.

Find the complete new guidelines, related resources, and more at https://professional.heart.org/en/science-news/2020-aha-guidelines-for-cpr-and-ecc.