Mechanical active compression-decompression versus standard mechanical cardiopulmonary resuscitation: A randomised haemodynamic out-of-hospital cardiac arrest study.

Background: Active compression-decompression cardiopulmonary resuscitation (ACD-CPR) utilises a suction cup to lift the chest-wall actively during the decompression phase (AD). We hypothesised that mechanical ACD-CPR (Intervention), with AD up to 30 mm above the sternal resting position, would generate better haemodynamic results than standard mechanical CPR (Control).

Methods: This out-of-hospital adult non-traumatic cardiac arrest trial was prospective, block-randomised and non-blinded.