By Roy Gordon, AHA BLS instructor/ EMT Updated February 21, 2025
In the US alone Sudden Cardiac Arrest (SCA) occurs more than 1,000 times a day. A person suddenly becomes unresponsive, stops breathing and may be gasping.
In SCA the heart stops pumping blood to the body and beats irregularly in a lethal rhythm called Ventricular Fibrillation (VF). Compressions are needed to keep blood circulating to the heart and brain until a Defibrillator can shock the heart back Into a normal rhythm.
If compressions are not initiated a person would suffer irreversible brain damage in as little as 4-6 minutes of SCA.
Thankfully, giving mouth-to-mouth breathing is not necessary for SCA for adults. Ventilations can be delayed until EMTs arrive in an average response time of 6-8 minutes, or until an AED (Automated External Defibrillator) arrives with a pocket mask.
The problem with a witnessed SCA isn’t the lack of oxygen, but rather the lack of circulation, so beginning compression’s will circulate oxygenated blood to their heart, and brain to keep them alive.
Here are the steps for Hands-Only™ CPR, and an AHA video below.
However, like any skill, knowing this information doesn’t compare with practicing, and gaining the confidence that comes with taking an AHA CPR class to obtain your CPR certification.
Hands-Only™ CPR
(Given in more detail here than in AHA promotional videos)
- Make sure the scene is safe!
- Tap and shout and if the person is unresponsive, tell someone to Call 911 and get an AED
- Look for breathing for 10 seconds. If the person is not breathing or only gasping, begin compressions.
- Kneel besides the person
- Place the Heel of One Hand on the Center of the Chest and
- Place the Heel of the Other Hand on Top of the First Hand, Then Lace Your Fingers Together and Position Your Shoulders Directly Over Your Hands with Your Arms Straight
- Push Hard and Fast. Use Your Body Weight to Help You Administer Compressions That Are at Least 2 Inches Deep and Delivered at a Rate of at Least 100-120 Per Minute.
- Be Sure to Let the Chest fully recoil Between Compressions.
- Switch with another person every 200 Compressions
When the AED arrives use it immediately.
Continue until you see a person moving and/or breathing.
This video produced by the Sarver Heart Center in Arizona first created the concept of giving CCC to (Continuous Chest Compressions) which was later phrased by the AHA as Hands-Only CPR in 2008.
Hands-Only™ CPR is not effective in the following situations:
- Children and Infants
- Drowning victims
- Airway obstruction/ unresponsive choking
- Head injuries that stop breathing
- Acute respiratory arrest such as associated with smoke inhalation, or drug overdose
- Not witnessed Sudden Cardiac Arrest
Note: Mouth-to-mouth breathing is intended for friends and family. airway devices like a Pocket mask are necessary to protect from the potential transmission of disease.
The last step is your first step: Obtain your CPR certification.
As San Francisco’s most trusted American Heart Association (AHA) CPR Training site, Revive CPR has been offering CPR classes and BLS certification since 2010. If you are not in the San Francisco Bay Area, then reach out to your local AHA training center for your CPR certification
Revive CPR, 148 Townsend St., San Francisco, CA 94107
For healthcare providers: Learn more about our American Heart Association BLS certification in San Francisco,. All Classes are Instructor-led. No voice assisted manikins
Revive CPR 148 Townsend St., San Francisco, CA 94107
BLS certification classes weekdays, and weekends in SF.
Hands-only CPR is a Trademark of
The American Heart Association
