First aid is the first and immediate assistance given to any person with either a minor or serious illness or injury, with care provided to preserve life, prevent the condition from worsening, or to promote recovery until medical services arrive. First aid is generally performed by someone with basic medical training. Mental health first aid is an extension of the concept of first aid to cover mental health, while psychological first aid is used as early treatment of people who are at risk for developing PTSD. Conflict First Aid, focused on preservation and recovery of an individual's social or relationship well-being, is being piloted in Canada.
Tracheal intubation, usually simply referred to as intubation, is the placement of a flexible plastic tube into the trachea (windpipe) to maintain an open airway or to serve as a conduit through which to administer certain drugs. It is frequently performed in critically injured, ill, or anesthetized patients to facilitate ventilation of the lungs, including mechanical ventilation, and to prevent the possibility of asphyxiation or airway obstruction.
Choking, also known as foreign body airway obstruction (FBAO), is a phenomenon that occurs when breathing is impeded by a blockage inside of the respiratory tract. An obstruction that prevents oxygen from entering the lungs results in oxygen deprivation. Although oxygen stored in the blood and lungs can keep a person alive for several minutes after breathing stops, choking often leads to death.
Abdominal thrusts, also known as the Heimlich maneuver or Heimlich manoeuvre, is a first-aid procedure used to treat upper-airway obstructions by foreign objects. American doctor Henry Heimlich is often credited for its discovery. To performing abdominal thrusts, a rescuer stands behind a choking victim and using the hands to exert pressure on the bottom of the diaphragm. This compresses the lungs and exerts pressure on the object lodged in the trachea in an effort to expel it.
In first aid, the recovery position is one of a series of variations on a lateral recumbent or three-quarters prone position of the body, often used for unconscious but breathing casualties.
Battlefield medicine, also called field surgery and later combat casualty care, is the treatment of wounded combatants and non-combatants in or near an area of combat. Civilian medicine has been greatly advanced by procedures that were first developed to treat the wounds inflicted during combat. With the advent of advanced procedures and medical technology, even polytrauma can be survivable in modern wars. Battlefield medicine is a category of military medicine.
Basic life support (BLS) is a level of medical care which is used for patients with life-threatening illnesses or injuries until they can be given full medical care by advanced life support providers. It can be provided by trained medical personnel, such as emergency medical technicians, and by qualified bystanders.
Airway management includes a set of maneuvers and medical procedures performed to prevent and relieve airway obstruction. This ensures an open pathway for gas exchange between a patient's lungs and the atmosphere. This is accomplished by either clearing a previously obstructed airway; or by preventing airway obstruction in cases such as anaphylaxis, the obtunded patient, or medical sedation. Airway obstruction can be caused by the tongue, foreign objects, the tissues of the airway itself, and bodily fluids such as blood and gastric contents (aspiration).
Respiratory arrest is a serious medical condition caused by apnea or respiratory dysfunction severe enough that it will not sustain the body. Prolonged apnea refers to a patient who has stopped breathing for a long period of time. If the heart muscle contraction is intact, the condition is known as respiratory arrest. An abrupt stop of pulmonary gas exchange lasting for more than five minutes may permanently damage vital organs, especially the brain. Lack of oxygen to the brain causes loss of consciousness. Brain injury is likely if respiratory arrest goes untreated for more than three minutes, and death is almost certain if more than five minutes.
A cervical collar, also known as a neck brace, is a medical device used to support and immobilize a person's neck. It is also applied by emergency personnel to those who have had traumatic head or neck injuries, and can be used to treat chronic medical conditions.
Advanced trauma life support (ATLS) is a training program for medical providers in the management of acute trauma cases, developed by the American College of Surgeons. Similar programs exist for immediate care providers such as paramedics. The program has been adopted worldwide in over 60 countries, sometimes under the name of Early Management of Severe Trauma, especially outside North America. Its goal is to teach a simplified and standardized approach to trauma patients. Originally designed for emergency situations where only one doctor and one nurse are present, ATLS is now widely accepted as the standard of care for initial assessment and treatment in trauma centers. The premise of the ATLS program is to treat the greatest threat to life first. It also advocates that the lack of a definitive diagnosis and a detailed history should not slow the application of indicated treatment for life-threatening injury, with the most time-critical interventions performed early.
Outdoor emergency care (OEC) was first developed by the National Ski Patrol in the 1980s for certification in first aid, and other pre-hospital care and treatment for possible injuries in non-urban settings. Outdoor emergency care technicians provide care at ski resorts, wilderness settings, white-water excursions, mountain bike events, and in many other outdoor environments.
ABC and its variations are initialism mnemonics for essential steps used by both medical professionals and lay persons when dealing with a patient. In its original form it stands for Airway, Breathing, and Circulation. The protocol was originally developed as a memory aid for rescuers performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation, and the most widely known use of the initialism is in the care of the unconscious or unresponsive patient, although it is also used as a reminder of the priorities for assessment and treatment of patients in many acute medical and trauma situations, from first-aid to hospital medical treatment. Airway, breathing, and circulation are all vital for life, and each is required, in that order, for the next to be effective. Since its development, the mnemonic has been extended and modified to fit the different areas in which it is used, with different versions changing the meaning of letters or adding other letters.
Hangman's fracture is the colloquial name given to a fracture of both pedicles, or partes interarticulares, of the axis vertebra (C2).
The Spurling test is a medical maneuver used to assess nerve root pain. The patient rotates their head to the affected side and extends their neck, while the examiners applies downward pressure to the top of the patient's head. A positive Spurling's sign is when the pain arising in the neck radiates in the direction of the corresponding dermatome ipsilaterally. It is a type of cervical compression test.
Dislocations occur when two bones that originally met at the joint detach. Dislocations should not be confused with Subluxation. Subluxation is when the joint is still partially attached to the bone.
In sports medicine, helmet removal is the practice of removing the helmet of someone who has just experienced a sports injury in order to better facilitate first aid. Obvious causes include head and neck injury, or both, with no immediate means of excluding neck injury in the athlete who may be unable to give a history.
Spinal precautions, also known as spinal immobilization and spinal motion restriction, are efforts to prevent movement of the spine in those with a risk of a spine injury. This is done as an effort to prevent injury to the spinal cord. It is estimated that 2% of people with blunt trauma will have a spine injury.
Basic airway management are a set of medical procedures performed in order to prevent airway obstruction and thus ensuring an open pathway between a patient's lungs and the outside world. This is accomplished by clearing or preventing obstructions of airways, often referred to as choking, cause by the tongue, the airways themselves, foreign bodies or materials from the body itself, such as blood or aspiration. Contrary to advanced airway management, minimal-invasive techniques does not rely on the use of medical equipment and can be performed without or with little training. Airway management is a primary consideration in cardiopulmonary resuscitation, anaesthesia, emergency medicine, intensive care medicine and first aid.
The jaw-thrust maneuver is a first aid and medical procedure used to prevent the tongue from obstructing the upper airways. This maneuver and the head-tilt/chin-lift maneuver are two of the main tools of basic airway management, and they are often used in conjunction with other basic airway techniques including bag-valve-mask ventilation. The jaw-thrust maneuver is often used on patients with cervical neck problems or suspected cervical spine injury.
