ABC is an acronym to help you remember the important first steps
before performing CPR: airway, breathing, and circulation. Open the airway, check
the victim’s breathing, and pulse (i.e. circulation).
To
open the victim’s airway, lift
the chin carefully. This will move the jaw forward and tilt the head
backward, allowing a path for air to travel to the lungs from the mouth
and nose.
Remember
– don’t push the forehead back in an effort to open the airway. If the
victim has a neck or spinal injury, this will only make it worse.
To
check for breathing, watch the
victim’s chest. If you can see it rise and fall even slightly, then they
are breathing.
Whether
or not you can see the chest rise and fall, listen with your ear to the
mouth and nose. You are listening for breathing sounds.
If you
can’t hear the victim breathing, but can feel their breath on your ear,
then they are breathing. Use as many senses as possible and your best
judgment.
To
check circulation, feel for a
pulse. Press two fingers gently on the victim’s neck between the Adam’s
apple and the muscle and the side of the neck. Don’t use your thumb,
because your thumb has a pulse of its own.
To
check an infant’s circulation, press two fingers between the armpit and
elbow on the inside of the baby’s arm.
Remember, if your search for breathing and circulation yield
nothing, have someone call 911 or call them yourself if you are the only
conscious person in the room, and immediately begin compressions and artificial
breathing.