Stayin' alive – does music have a role in CPR?
In the past it has been recommended to follow the beat of “Stayin' Alive” and “Nellie the Elephant” to perform the right number of chest compressions each minute. But now studies show that using these tracks in not such a good idea because it can lead to compressions which are too shallow. This is why experts claim that there would be better songs.
In the US performing CPR to “Stayin' Alive” was recommended because it contains 103 beats per minute and correctly CPR should be performed at a rate of 100 to 120 compressions per minute. “Nellie the Elephant” had been recommended in the UK and there was a study published in 2009 which showed that using this song as a help really increased the number of people getting the right rate. Recently another study tested the effect of using “Achy Breaky Heart” by Billy Ray Cyrus and “Disco Science” by Mirways but even if people use these songs as an aid, more than a third of compressions are still too shallow. The authors of that study also stated that they were not convinced “that music provides any benefit in improving the quality of CPR”. The lead author of the study added that anything that would encourage people to intervene was a good thing and that any form of CPR was better than none, even if you use any of those songs as aid.
I think this is interesting because I have never heard, that music could help people performing CRP. But on the other hand I have to say “Thank God, I haven't needed to do that so far!”