Which Fingers Should We Perform Two-Finger Chest Compression Technique with When Performing Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation on an Infant in Cardiac Arrest?

Abstract

This study compared the effectiveness two-finger chest compression technique (TFCC) performed using the right vs. left hand and the index-middle vs. middle-ring fingers. Four different finger/hand combinations were tested randomly in 30 healthcare providers performing TFCC (Test 1: the right index-middle fingers; Test 2: the left index-middle fingers; Test 3: the right middle-ring fingers; Test 4: the left middle-ring fingers) using two cross-over trials. The "patient" was a 3-month-old-infant-sized manikin. Each experiment consisted of cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) consisting of 2 minutes of 30:2 compression: ventilation performed by one rescuer on a manikin lying on the floor as if in cardiac arrest. Ventilations were performed using the mouth-to-mouth method. Compression and ventilation data were collected during the tests. The mean compression depth (MCD) was significantly greater in TFCC performed with the index-middle fingers than with the middle-ring fingers regardless of the hand (95% confidence intervals; right hand: 37.8-40.2 vs. 35.2-38.6 mm, P=0.002; left hand: 36.9-39.2 vs. 35.5-38.1 mm, P=0.003). A deeper MCD was achieved with the index-middle fingers of the right versus the left hand (P=0.004). The ratio of sufficiently deep compressions showed the same patterns. There were no significant differences in the other data. The best performance of TFCC in simulated 30:2 compression: ventilation CPR performed by one rescuer on an infant in cardiac arrest lying on the floor was obtained using the index-middle fingers of the right hand.