STAYING ALIVE
How knowing the 90s hit La Macarena could help you save a life in an emergency
A tempo of between 100 to 120 beats per minute is needed to boost a heart attack victims chance of survival
PERFORMING CPR to ‘La Macarena’ really is a life saver, research reveals.
It found those who timed compressions to match the song’s beat were three times more likely to do it right.
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A tempo of between 100 to 120 beats per minute is needed to boost a heart attack victims chance of survival.
First-aiders who used the 1990s Spanish dance hit to guide their CPR hit the target three-quarters of the time.
It compared with just a quarter if no song was used.
Only those who had an metronome app which gave a regular click or noise at a regular interval did better but were slower in starting the compressions in the first place.
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Improving the quality of compressions performed during CPR can significantly increase the chance of survival and lead to better health outcomes.
So scientists at the University of Barcelona, Hospital Clinic Barcelona, and Universitat Autònoma Barcelona, compared the effectiveness of either the smartphone app or “La Macarena” as a mental memory aid.
Both the app and the song provide a regular rhythm to help time compressions.
The study used 164 medical students who performed continuous chest compressions on a manikin for two minutes.
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They either received no guidance as the control group, were provided with the smartphone app, or were asked to perform compressions to the mental beat of the Los Des Rio hit.
The smartphone app made a noise for each compression at 103 beats per minute (bpm),
Those in the Macarena group the students needed to prove first that they knew the song in order to do the compressions correctly.
It found the average percentage of compressions occurring in the target range of 100-120 bpm was significantly higher in the App and Macarena groups - 91% and 74% respectively - compared to the control group - 24%.
MORE ON FIRST AID
No group achieved the required compression depth of five centimetre, but those using the App had the best overall quality compression scores despite having the longest onset delay before performing the first compression.
The students who participated in the experiment also rated the app as being the most useful help method.
Professor Enrique Carrero Cardenal said: “Both the app and using mental memory aid ‘La Macarena’ improved the quality of chest compressions by increasing the proportion of adequate rate but not the depth of compressions.
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