Signs of mechanical asphyxia in humans, first aid for suffocation

First aid for a suffocation attack

Asphyxia (suffocation) is a condition characterized by a sharp lack of oxygen and an excess of carbon dioxide in the blood and tissues. Asphyxia occurs as a result of impaired external breathing.

Causes of a feeling of suffocation in the throat:

• mechanical obstruction of air access from compression of the respiratory tract from the outside;
• tumor growth;
• larynx muscle spasms (laryngospasm);
• paralysis of respiratory muscles;
• respiratory tract obstruction (asthma, bronchitis);
• entry of food, water, vomitus and foreign bodies into the respiratory tract;
• poisoning with carbon monoxide or other toxic vapors;
• electric shock.

Signs of mechanical asphyxia in humans

Mechanical asphyxia can be the result of strangulation with a loop or hands (strangulation), compression of the abdomen and chest (compression), closing of the airway entrances (obturation).

Symptoms of strangulation asphyxia:

• presence of a trace in the form of a strangulation furrow on the neck;
• loss of consciousness;
• muscle tension;
• blueness of the skin;
• subconjunctival hemorrhage;
• accelerated arrhythmic breathing;
• tachycardia.

Signs of mechanical asphyxia in a person appear in the following sequence: inspiratory dyspnea (difficult inhalation) begins, which is replaced by expiratory dyspnea (difficult exhalation). Blueness of the face, dizziness, changes in blood pressure and heart rate, loss of consciousness, narrowing, and then dilation of the pupils are observed. If timely help is not provided, death occurs due to paralysis of the respiratory center and cardiac arrest.

First aid for a suffocation attack when a foreign body enters the respiratory tract:

• stand behind the victim and wrap your arms around his waist;
• press the fist with the thumb to the abdomen above the navel, but below the ribs;
• holding the fist with the other hand, press on the stomach with a sharp movement from the bottom up.

Relieve the feeling of suffocation and pain in the neck with laryngospasm as follows:

• put the patient on a hard surface and unbutton tight clothes;
• ensure access to fresh air;
• calm the patient;
• sprinkle your face with cold water, hold a cotton swab with ammonia to your nose;
• if there is a threat of asphyxiation, tracheal intubation or tracheotomy is performed.

Consequences of asphyxia in newborns

The main cause of fetal and newborn asphyxia is a decrease or complete cessation of oxygen supply as a result of a violation of umbilical cord or uteroplacental blood circulation. Intrauterine hypoxia may be associated with prolapse or occlusion of the umbilical cord, placental infarction. A frequent cause of asphyxia is maternal smoking: carbon monoxide-induced tissue hypoxia and placental insufficiency lead to a decrease in blood flow from the uterus to the placenta, thereby reducing the availability of oxygen to the fetus. Such a condition threatens to damage the central nervous system of the baby. Fetal asphyxia during childbirth, which occurs within 48 hours after birth, is a form of hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE). The cause of perinatal mortality in 38% of cases is intrauterine hypoxia and asphyxia during childbirth.

Oxygen deprivation in the fetus and newborn becomes the primary risk factor for a number of neurological and neuropsychiatric disorders (epilepsy, ADHD, cerebral palsy). The consequences of asphyxia in newborns are manifested in the form of early complications that develop in the first day of life, and late ones.

The first include:

• brain swelling;
• convulsions;
• intracranial hemorrhages;
• apnea attacks;
• transient pulmonary hypertension;
• thrombosis;
• polycythemic syndrome;
• hypoglycemia;
• post hypoxic cardiopathy;
• functional oliguria;
• posthemorrhagic shock.

Late complications:

• pneumonia;
• meningitis;
• sepsis;
• infectious intestinal lesions;
• secondary atelectasis;
• bronchopulmonary dysplasia;
• acute renal failure;
• hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy;
• transient insufficiency of the thyroid gland, adrenal glands;
• retinopathy of prematurity.

Also, secondary immunodeficiency, which accompanies multiple organ failure, contributes to the development of hospital infections. Read more about nosocomial infections on our website https://dobrobut.com/

Related services:
Ambulance call 5288