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Emergency Medicine & First Aid vocabulary · CPR and Resuscitation

Resuscitation

Meaning in emergency medicine & first aid, with examples

/rɪˌsʌsɪˈteɪʃən/nounCommon term

In emergency medicine & first aid, resuscitation means: Emergency treatment to restart or support breathing and circulation in someone who is dying or very unstable, including CPR, shocks, drugs and fluids.

In Turkish: resüsitasyon, canlandırma

How it is used

A broad word: cardiopulmonary resuscitation is CPR, while 'fluid resuscitation' means giving fluids to a shocked patient. Staff talk about resuscitation attempts and about DNACPR or DNR orders, decisions made in advance not to attempt CPR. The short form 'resus' also means the resuscitation room.

Example sentences

  1. Resuscitation continued for forty minutes before the team stopped.

  2. He has a do-not-attempt-resuscitation order in his notes.

Common collocations

  • resuscitation attempt
  • fluid resuscitation
  • resuscitation team
  • resuscitation guidelines
  • CPRShort for cardiopulmonary resuscitation: chest compressions, often with rescue breaths, given to someone whose heart has stopped, to keep blood and oxygen moving to the brain.
  • resusAn informal short form of resuscitation, used especially for the resuscitation room of an emergency department, where the sickest patients are treated.
  • ROSCShort for return of spontaneous circulation: the point during resuscitation when the heart starts beating effectively again and a pulse can be felt.
  • cardiac arrestA sudden stop in the heart's effective pumping, so that blood no longer reaches the brain and the person collapses and stops breathing normally.

More terms: CPR and Resuscitation

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This page explains English vocabulary for learners. It is not medical advice.