It’s probably true that a dog in Maryland saved a woman from choking to death last week. The dog’s reported efforts were similar to recommendations from the American Heart Association on how to assist adults who are choking.
A report published at the end of March in a Maryland daily The Cecil Whig claimed that a dog saved Debbie Parkhurst’s life while she was choking on a piece of an apple. Parkhurst, the dog’s owner, said that the two-year old golden retriever, Toby, first pushed her to the ground and then began jumping up and down on her chest.
We don’t know what Toby’s intentions were, but his actions may very well have provided the relief Parkhurst describes.
The American Heart Association recommends that bystanders use a series of rapid “abdominal thrusts” to help an adult who is still responsive but is having difficulty breathing because of what is called a “foreign body airway obstruction” (FBAO).
You might know these abdominal thrusts by the term “Heimlich maneuver.” These thrusts are similar to Toby’s efforts. However, in the Heimlich maneuver, a rescuer uses his or her hands to thrust against the abdomen. The intent of every thrust is very clear: get that foreign body out of the airway.
Food is the usual culprit in choking for adults, according to the most recent CPR guidelines from the American Heart Foundation.
One adult patient we assisted choked while he was eating pasta. Long strands of spaghetti became lodged in his throat and he was unable to breathe.
Another patient had a small plastic block stuck in his nose. Although his airway was not blocked, the compromised situation did require our intervention. Babies and children in choking emergencies may have toys or other small objects lodged in their airways, as well as food. As first responders, we rarely perform the Heimlich maneuver on any of these patients. The reason? Patients we see in choking emergencies have often already lost consciousness. The man choking on spaghetti was already unresponsive when we arrived.
Emergency medical services do, however, use other techniques and tools to clear the airways of unresponsive patients.
In any situation where a choking person is having difficulty breathing, call 911 as soon as possible. The sooner you get emergency medical services involved, the better. The man choking on spaghetti, for example, also required emergency cardiac care as a result of his airway blockage.
In other cases, a choking person manages to clear his/her airway, often with the help of someone else, before we arrive.
Since it is usually a bystander who will be the first one able to help a choking person, it’s advisable to learn what to do in this case. The Heimlich is one of several different maneuvers you can learn to help a person who is choking. The techniques are easy to learn.
Choking is a rare cause of death, but it is also a largely preventable one. It’s probably not wise to assume that a nearby dog will know what to do if you are ever involved in a choking emergency. Find out how you can intervene, and encourage the people you know to do the same.
The American Heart Association can be found online at http://www.americanheart.org/. Contact L’Équipe d’intervention médicale de Saint-Lazare at mailto:info@slmru.comFor information on a first aid course, call 450 455 5824 or email the Training Coordinator: nlaplante@saintlazare911.com. In an emergency, call 911.
