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Making EMS Breathe Easier: Machines Secured Last Summer Make Treating Patients Easier

Posted on: Friday, 21 April 2006, 06:00 CDT

By Aimee Juarez, The Charlotte Observer, N.C.

Apr. 21--Fifteen minutes after Lincoln County ambulances were equipped with the CPAP machines last summer, paramedics got their first call to treat a patient with breathing problems.

That's the purpose of the Continuous Positive Airway Pressure machine; it regulates the amount of air pumped into a person's lungs. If the lungs are filled with fluid, the machine blasts those fluids back into the circulatory system.

Later that July day, paramedics got their second call. Five more calls followed that month, Lincoln County Emergency Medical Services Maj. John Watts said.

Today, they use the machine an average of two or three times a month on patients who suffer from respiratory problems, such as congestive heart failure.

"Within a couple of minutes, their skin pinks up and you know it's working," Watts said.

A similar, smaller version of the machine is sometimes prescribed to patients with sleep apnea. But the one paramedics use is more sophisticated, according to EMS officials in Lincoln and Gaston counties. Aside from those with congestive heart failure, their machines are also built to help near-drowning victims, for example.

But on the ambulance, the machines are primarily used to treat patients with congestive heart failure. At its worst, the condition makes these patients feel like they're drowning, paramedics said.

"When you have someone that critical, they're using a lot of effort just to draw air in," said Randy Price, Gaston Emergency Medical Services training coordinator. "They tire quickly, then they get to the point where they can't breathe anymore."

The machine regulates the amount of oxygen that enters a person's lungs. The patient usually gets a dose of 100 percent oxygen mixed with room air through the mask. The pressure inflates the lungs and removes the fluid.

So not only is the patient treated faster, but his hospital stay is reduced from weeks to days.

"Any time you can reduce time in the hospital, it's great for the patient," said Ted Mankowski, Lincoln County Emergency Medical Services operation manager.

Gaston County ambulances have been equipped with the machines for two years, while Lincoln County ambulances have had them for almost one year. The machines usually cost between $500 and $1,000, EMS officials said.

The machine also helps paramedics see immediate relief in patients, Welfare said.

"It's one of those things you don't have to use a lot," he said. "But when you do, it works."

About CPAP

Smaller CPAP machines are usually recommended by doctors for patients with sleep apnea, which is usually associated with snoring.

Lincoln County Emergency Medical Services Maj. John Watts said the version paramedics use has been around for about five years.

Aimee Juarez: (704) 868-7731

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Copyright (c) 2006, The Charlotte Observer, N.C.

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Source: The Charlotte Observer (Charlotte, N.C.)

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