Artificial Respiration – Methods, Meaning, and Importance

Artificial respiration means saving situations to restore a person’s breathing through artificial means. Artificial respiration is a part of basic life support (BLS). Understanding various artificial respiration methods is crucial to saving someone’s life in emergencies.

These are non-invasive emergency procedures performed for the immediate survival of patients. In this article, we will cover the artificial respiration meaning, methods, types of artificial respiration, and also their importance.

Artificial respiration is a first-aid life-saving procedure performed mechanically or manually to restore or maintain respiration in an individual. It is done by forcing air into the lungs in a rhythmic manner in a person who has stopped breathing or is having difficulty breathing. Most of the time, artificial respiration is accompanied by CPR or Cardiopulmonary resuscitation, when the heart stops its pumping activity.

Also Read: Types and Phases of Respiration

Artificial respiration may be needed when a person’s natural breathing is compromised. It usually occurs in cases of respiratory failure, drowning, or drug overdose. Artificial respiration is also used during medical procedures that require sedation or anesthesia, where breathing may become shallow or stop altogether.

Artificial respiration provides oxygen to the lungs and removes carbon dioxide from the body. This helps to maintain vital functions until the person can breathe independently again. In emergency situations, instant administration of artificial respiration can be life-saving. It can prevents brain damage or even death due to lack of oxygen.

Also Read: Mechanism of Breathing

Artificial respiration can be administered in 2 ways-

• Manual method
• Mechanical method

• Manual ventilation of resuscitation can be applied quickly without waiting for any mechanical aids.
• Affected persons must be provided with clean air.
• Clothes around upper body regions (neck and chest) must be loosened.
• Mouth, face, and throat should be cleared of any mucus, saliva, and foreign particles. The tongue must be drawn forward. Posteriorly falling of tongue blocks airway.
• Manual methods of ventilation are-
  • Schafer’s prone pressure method
  • Sylvester’s method
  • Holger nielsons push and pull method
  • Mouth to mouth method

Schafer’s Prone Pressure Method

Schafer’s method is an alternative to mouth-to-mouth resuscitation. Lay the patient on their back with raised shoulders. Cross their wrists over their chest, press down on the chest, then draw the arms backward and outward. Kneel near the patient’s waist, place one arm overhead and the other bent at the elbow. Turn the patient’s face to the side, clear any fluid, then apply pressure on the loin to boost abdominal visceral and aid expiration. Bend backward to release pressure, allowing inspiration. Repeat with 3-second inspiration and 2-second expiration cycles.

Also Read: Inspiration and Expiration

Advantage of Schafer’s Prone Pressure Method

• It is a simple method where due to prone position, water from abdomen and lungs can easily drained.
• By this means it is possible to have a total pulmonary ventilation of 6,500 ml per minute which is sufficient for complete aeration of blood.
• Due to being at the prone position mucus or saliva comes out of the mouth and cannot obstruct his airways.

Disadvantage

• It can be less effective because it requires the patient to be positioned face-down, which can be difficult to maintain and potentially harmful if spinal injuries are present.
• It also provides less effective ventilation compared to modern CPR techniques..

Sylvester’s Method (Arm Lift Chest Pressure Method)

The Sylvester artificial breathing method, often used for suffocation or inability to rest on the stomach (e.g., pregnant women or those with abdominal wounds), involves raising the patient’s arms to enlarge the chest, then lowering them to constrict it, repeated 15 times per minute. Steps include:

• Raise the chest and extend the neck of the patient by placing a pillow under the scapula
• The doctor will kneel at a comfortable distance from the patient’s head facing the patient’s feet
• Hold the patient’s forearm distal to the elbow and carry them upward and backward over
• Patient’s head hold for 2 seconds
• Then carry arms forwards and downwards again patients reap and give Progressive
• Pressure on the front side of the chest for two seconds.
• Repeat the cycle of the movement.

Advantage of Sylvester’s method

• Both inhalation and exhalation are active so good ventilation is obtained.

Disadvantage of Sylvester’s method

• In this method, patient is in supine position so there is no drainage of water. Hence, it is not used in cases of drowning.
• It can not be used in case of rib fracture or thorax.

Also Read: Ribcage Diagram

Holger Neilsons Push and Pull Method

The Holger Nielsen Method is similar to the Silvester Method in reverse and is used with patients who are laying prone. These are the steps follows in it-

• First Place the patient in a prone position with elbows bent, one hand over the other, and the head resting on the folded hands.
• Position yourself by the patient’s head.
• Place your hands on the patient’s back below the armpits, keeping your elbows straight.
• Bend forward, applying pressure with your hands.
• Bend backward to release the pressure and hold the patient’s arms above the elbows.
• As you move backward, raise and pull the patient’s arms towards you until you feel tension in the shoulders.

Advantage of Holger Neilsons Push and Pull Method

• Adequate drainage of water from the abdomen and thorax makes this method suitable for drowning cases.
• This method can be used even if there are injuries to the abdomen.
• Both inspiration and expiration are active, ensuring good ventilation.

Disadvantage of Holger Neilsons Push and Pull Method

• This method is tiring and requires assistance.
• It cannot be used if there are injuries to the scapula.

Mouth to Mouth Breathing

In this method, first, perform the head-lift/chin-lift manoeuvre to free the airway. Put your hand on the person’s head and pinch their nose shut. Put your lips together and seal the person’s mouth. Give them a second blow, then wait for their chest to rise. If the victim’s chest does not lift, tilt their head further back. Take another breath and hold it for more than a second. Continue applying chest compressions if the patient’s chest doesn’t rise after two breaths.

• Extend the patient’s head and clean his mouth and place a thin cloth over his lips.
• Pinch his nostril with one hand and hold his lower jaw with other hand and lift it to keep the mouth open.
• Now take a deep breath and blow into patient’s mouth until his chest expands.
• Take your mouth away and allow passive expiration.

Advantage of Mouth to Mouth Breathing

• Advantage of this method are giving expired air which contain CO2, which stimulate patient’s respiratory center. So, good ventilation is obtained.
• Inspiration is active. expiration is passive, which is physiological respiratory infection.
• It is the best method of artificial respiration in new born babies.

Disadvantage of Mouth to Mouth Breathing

• As this is done in supine position, water from abdomen, if it is not drained regurgitate back into the lungs and then may lead to respiratory infection.

Mechanical methods of artificial respiration become necessary in pepole who are very ill and are admitted to intensive care units. Most commonly, patients who are suffering from hypoxic or hypercapnia-associated respiratory distress require mechanical ventilation, because these patients need enhanced ventilation for longer periods without compromising airways’ safety.

Additionally, mechanical ventilation may also be needed during surgical procedures and as a supportive therapy in patients suffering from neuromuscular disorders. Furthermore, patients suffering from conditions such as hemoptysis, angioedema, heart failure, and shock require mechanical ventilation during treatment. Mechanical ventilation is very essential to the treatment of respiratory failure due to paralysis of respiratory muscles.

Mechanical methods are of two types:

1. Drinker method
2. Ventilation method

Drinker Method

In Drinker method, positive and negative pressure is alternately pumped into the chamber while the patient is inside with their head outside. The patient inhales and extends their chest under negative pressure, and exhales under positive pressure. This is a mechanical method and follow these steps-

• The machine used in this method is called an iron lung chamber or tank respirator.
• The equipment has an airtight chamber, made of iron or steel.
• The subject is placed inside this chamber with the head outside the chamber.
• Using some pumps, the pressure inside the chamber is made positive and negative alternately.
• During the negative pressure in the chamber, the subject’s thoracic cage expands and inspiration occurs and during positive pressure, the expiration occurs.

Ventilation Method

The term “mechanical ventilation” in medicine refers to artificial ventilation in which a patient’s natural breathing is supplemented or replaced by mechanical methods.

• Apparatus used for ventilation is called a ventilator. The patient will be intra-tracheal intubated by passing a rubber tube into the trachea through the mouth.
• By using a pump, air or oxygen is pumped into the lungs with a certain pressure, intermittently.
• When air is pumped, inflation of lungs takes place and inspiration occur. When the pump is stopped, expiration occurs and the cycle is repeated.
• There are two types of ventilators based on different control variables, although operated in the same mode.
  • Volume ventilator
  • Pressure ventilator

1. Volume ventilator: A constant volume of air is pumped into the lungs of the patients, albeit intermittently, with the application of minimum pressure.

2. Pressure ventilator: Here, air is pumped into the lungs of the subject at a constantly high pressure.

The importance of artificial respiration is given below:

• Life-Saving: Artificial respiration provides oxygenation to the body preventing brain damage and death in people with compromised breathing.
• Supports Respiratory Function: Helps maintain adequate gas exchange in patients experiencing respiratory distress or failure due to various medical conditions.
• Critical in Emergencies: Vital during cardiac arrest, drowning, drug overdose, and other situations where immediate intervention is needed to restore breathing.
• Prevents Hypoxia: Ensures tissues receive sufficient oxygen, preventing hypoxia-related complications such as organ failure and tissue damage.
• Facilitates Medical Procedures: Essential for surgeries, anesthesia, and sedation, ensuring patients maintain proper oxygen levels while under medical care.
• Personalized Treatment: Allows for individualized care, with various methods and techniques available to suit different patient needs and conditions.
• Improves Patient Outcomes: Plays a crucial role in stabilizing patients until underlying respiratory issues can be addressed, promoting recovery and improving overall prognosis.

It can be conclude that Artificial respiration help us to maintain and establish an open air passage from upper respiratory tract to lungs. It helps to exchange of O2 and CO2 in terminal air sac of the lungs while heart is still functioning. This is a procedure that involves a complete exchange of gases via external respiration, internal respiration, and pulmonary ventilation.

Also Read:

• Aerobic Respiration
• Respiratory System Disorders – Definition, Causes, Types, Symptoms
• Difference Between Aerobic and Anaerobic Respiration

Is Artificial Respiration The Same as CPR?

It generally entails providing air for a person who is not breathing or is not making sufficient respiratory effort on their own. It is used on a patient with a beating heart or as part of cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) to achieve the internal respiration.

Which Gas is Used For Artificial Respiration?

Carbogen gas is used. It is a mixture of 95% oxygen and 5% carbon dioxide. Researchers claim that use of 5% carbon dioxide helps in the widening of blood vessels, smoothening of vessel walls that aids respiration.

What are The Benefits of Artificial Respiration?

Artificial respiration techniques can prevent deaths from drowning, choking, strangulation, suffocation, carbon monoxide poisoning, and electric shock.

Is Artificial Respiration Permanently?

The person is kept on artificial respiration temporarily, until the person regains his health and starts breathing naturally.

What are The Two Main Types of Artificial Respiration?

Sylvester’s method and Schaffer’s method are two important artificial respiration methods.