Choking happens when a casualty’s upper airway is partly or completely blocked by food or other foreign material.
The signs for choking are:
hands clutched to the throat
• Inability to talk
• Difficulty breathing or noisy breathing
• Cough, which may either be weak or forceful
• Skin, lips and nails turning blue or dusky
• Skin that is flushed, then turns pale or bluish in color
• Loss of consciousness
First aid steps:
- If the person is able to cough forcefully, the person should keep coughing.
-If the person is choking and can't talk, cry or laugh forcefully, we do A "five-and five" approach for delivering first aid.
-Alternate between 5 blows and 5 thrusts until the blockage is dislodged.
-Stand behind the person.
-Place one foot slightly in front of the other for balance. Wrap your arms around the waist. Tip the person forward slightly. If a child is choking, kneel down behind the child. Make a fist with one hand. Position it slightly above the person's navel.
-Grasp the fist with the other hand. Press hard into the abdomen with a quick, upward thrust as if trying to lift the person up.
-Perform between six and 10 abdominal thrusts until the blockage is dislodged.
-If you're the only rescuer, perform back blows and abdominal thrusts before calling your local emergency number for help. If another person is available, have that person call for help while you perform first aid. If the person becomes unconscious, perform standard cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) with chest compressions and rescue breaths.
Dr. Rania Abd Elmohsen Abo Elnour
(lecturer in Almostaqbal University _ College of medical and health Techniques and sciences)