Monday 21 October 2013

RELIEF OF CHOKING

Choking occurs when food or an object/foreign body gets stuck in a person's throat(airway),thereby obstructing the individual's breathing.It  can also be referred to as foreign-body airway obstruction.Foreign bodies may cause a range of symptoms from mild to severe airway obstruction.
       
    SIGNS OF CHOKING
1.Inability to breathe or difficulty in breathing.
2.Forceful coughing.
3.Inability to speak.
4.Clutching the neck with the thumb and fingers.
5.High pitched noise while inhaling.e.t.c

    INTERVENTION
Use abdominal thrusts(Heimlich maneuver) to relieve choking in a victim 1 year of age or older.Follow these steps to perform abdominal thrusts on a victim who is standing or sitting.
1.Stand or kneel behind the victim  and wrap your arms around the victim's waist.
2.Make a fist with one hand.
3.Place the thumb side of your fist against the victim's abdomen(belly),in the midline ,slightly above the navel and well below the breastbone.
4.Grasp your fist with your other hand and press your fist into the victim's abdomen with a quick,forceful upward thrust(jerk).
5.Repeat thrusts until object is expelled from the airway(throat).
If the victim is pregnant or obese perform chest thrusts instead of abdominal thrusts.Follow these steps to perform chest thrusts.
1.Position yourself at the victim's side.
2.Make sure the victim is lying faceup on a firm,flat surface.
3.Put the heel of one hand on the center of the victim's chest on the lower half of  the breastbone.
4.Put the heel of your other hand on top of  the first hand.
5.Straighten your arms and position your shoulders directly over your hands.
6.Push hard and fast.
7.Repeat until object is expelled.
You can tell if you have successfully removed an airway obstruction if :
1.victim breaths without difficulty
2.you see and remove foreign body from the victim's mouth.

     

         

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