High School

How does providing care for an unresponsive choking infant differ from an unresponsive choking adult or child? Select two answers:
1. Use the encircling thumbs or the two-finger technique to give chest compressions.
2. Open the infant’s mouth to look for the object before attempting 2 ventilations.
3. Do a finger sweep before each set of ventilations.
4. Use your pinky instead of a larger finger to do a finger sweep.
5. Attempt up to four ventilations per cycle.

Answer :

When providing care for an unresponsive choking infant compared to an unresponsive choking adult or child, there are important differences in techniques due to size and developmental considerations. Here are two key differences:

  1. Use the encircling thumbs or the two-finger technique to give chest compressions:

    • For infants (under one year old), chest compressions are performed using either the encircling thumbs technique, where your thumbs press down on the infant's sternum, or the two-finger technique, where two fingers are used to press on the chest. This is necessary because infants are significantly smaller, and these methods provide adequate force without causing harm.
  2. Open the infant’s mouth to look for the object before attempting 2 ventilations:

    • For any age, before giving breaths, it is important to look into the mouth to see if the object causing the obstruction is visible. However, in infants, particular attention is given to this step because gently looking could help in visualizing and removing an easy-to-reach obstruction before attempting further ventilations. This ensures that the airway is as clear as possible.

These techniques are necessary to adapt first aid procedures to the physical size and needs of the patient effectively while ensuring safety and maximizing the chances of successful resuscitation.