AED and O2

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Playing EOD right now not medic.
 
ReneeC:
As a Red Cross and American Heart instructor trainer "do not use an AED in the presence of flowing oxygen" is the rule.

I do not recall that instruction from my Red Cross CPR for the Professional Rescuer or my AHA CPR Health Care Provider courses.

There is no reason to turn off the O2 unless you are sitting fuel (grease or gas).

However, for the AED to evaluate the heart rythmn, nobody is supposed to touch the patient so if you are using a mask that must be held on (like just about any mask used for CPR) you will probably remove that from their face during AED evaluation and shock (if indicated) because you shouldn't touch the patient.
 
Check your ARC CPR/AED for Professional Rescuers student book - pg 60 under AED Precautions. Don't have my AHA books anymore since I am no longer instructing for them.
 
I have never been taught to turn o2 off at time of defibrilation, more than likely in a dive resue scenario you will be outdoors so the excess o2 would be disapate even in a structure there would not be enough excess o2 to reach a critical flammable level. I have seen the defib pads ark in the presence of o2 in the confines of an ambulance with no explosion. The main cause of arking tends to be a hairy chest that was'nt shaved adequately. The vomiting is not caused by defibrilation but usually from chest compressions and air build up in the stomach from giving ventilations to victim. These statements are based on my experience in E.M.S.
 
skeet:
I have never been taught to turn o2 off at time of defibrilation, more than likely in a dive resue scenario you will be outdoors so the excess o2 would be disapate even in a structure there would not be enough excess o2 to reach a critical flammable level.

Ok, boys and girls, quick Fire Science lesson. Oxygen is NOT flammable. Oxygen supports combustion, most things will not burn without the presence of oxygen. Excess oxygen will, however, accelerate the rate of combustion rapidly. A spark alone in an oxygen rich atmosphere is not going to cause an explosion. You can light a cigarette in an oxygen rich atmosphere and it will burn extremely fast, but it will not explode. The danger lies in the outside chance than an arc catches clothing, body hair, or some other object on fire. In this very rare outside chance, you would have a rapidly growing fire, not an explosion. All of this being said, I have applied AED pads several hundred times, and have never removed o2 from the patient. The miniscule chance that an arc is going to happen, combined with the even smaller chance that it will catch something on fire, is far outweighed by the patient's need for o2. (DISCLAIMER) Of course, you should always follow your training or local protocols.
 
texdiveguy:
I have a question for you PSD whom have delt with this type of situation..... I will soon be finishing my DAN Diving Emergency Specialist (DES) rating,,,,which among many preq. courses you must have DAN O2 and DAN Adv. O2 plus AED certf. just to mention a few. **My question is when you have been adm. CPR and O2 via an oronasal mask to a patient and then an AED unit comes available,,,,,,do you need to remove the mask/O2 from the patient to adm. the AED shock to avoid explosion-fire,,,,,or is this not a threat? I feel I know the answer,,,,that being it poses no great danger,,in that it is done in ERs daily,,,,but I still want to cover myself just in case the "perfect world" setting with all the tools ever happens.
Firefyter:
(DISCLAIMER) Of course, you should always follow your training or local protocols.
Gentlemen
I am well aware that oxygen is not flammable. My responses were based on the orginal question which indicates that texdiveguy is not a professional rescuer but a trained lay rescuer. Definately not argueing with your responses but cautioning against exceeding training for liability reasons.
 
Firefyter:
Ok, boys and girls, quick Fire Science lesson. Oxygen is NOT flammable. Oxygen supports combustion, most things will not burn without the presence of oxygen. Excess oxygen will, however, accelerate the rate of combustion rapidly. A spark alone in an oxygen rich atmosphere is not going to cause an explosion. You can light a cigarette in an oxygen rich atmosphere and it will burn extremely fast, but it will not explode. The danger lies in the outside chance than an arc catches clothing, body hair, or some other object on fire. In this very rare outside chance, you would have a rapidly growing fire, not an explosion. All of this being said, I have applied AED pads several hundred times, and have never removed o2 from the patient. The miniscule chance that an arc is going to happen, combined with the even smaller chance that it will catch something on fire, is far outweighed by the patient's need for o2. (DISCLAIMER) Of course, you should always follow your training or local protocols.


Ya otta see how fast a cig burns in conjunction with O2 via cannula! OK, the cig not so fast but those plastic cannulas full of O2 go up in a fraction of a second. Had two people two weeks apart with the same problem. HELLO PEOPLE your on O2 becouse you have been sucking up cigs for the last forty years, time to stop don't ya think?
 
Just trying to give specific answers to his statements, not everyone has had education in fire science. Firefyter, you made very good points.
 
Good article on O2 use in the Dec. 04' issue of DiveTraining magz. on page 67.
 

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