# 'CPR Glove' invented by Ontario students sets investors' hearts racing



## Bigmac (6 Mar 2007)

> 'CPR Glove' invented by Ontario students sets investors' hearts racing
> 04/03/2007 1:43:00 PM
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http://healthandfitness.sympatico.msn.ca/Bell.Sympatico.CMS/Print.aspx?type=feed&lang=en&feedname=cp-health&newsitemid=12479015

     Waste of money if you ask me. Hey, I think they also have a sequined glove that assists you to moonwalk! :


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## medaid (7 Mar 2007)

hehehe... I wander if they made that glove to the new CPR protocols? If they did, what level did they chose? CPR A, B, C or HCP? *evil smile* more then accurate BigMac in saying that this is a waste of time and money.... then again I'm biased... I'm a CPR instructor  ;D


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## 284_226 (7 Mar 2007)

I'm curious...why the skepticism?  I agree it's early in development, but McMaster is one of the leading research universities in the country, and it has garnered interest from these folks, who seem to know a thing or two about resuscitation - http://www.med.upenn.edu/resuscitation/

I have no special medical training other than the old Standard First Aid and CPR, but as a tech I can say that the technology is certainly _capable_ of performing as advertised.

Biomedical technology has always been an interest of mine...although not a big enough interest to specialize in it formally.


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## medaid (7 Mar 2007)

Like I said, I'm biased  ;D

You see... I guess from my point of view, it is not as simple as slapping on a pair of gloves and conducting CPR. Despite the fact that many people have been taught CPR, the chances of them performing it adequately or correctly under stress and pressure is not as high as we would like it to be. Now, one may argue that the AED has brought a tramendous change in survival rate of heart attach patients, however, an AED is just that, a defibrilator made for the common user. It teaches you nothing, you merely press buttons. A glove which 'teaches' or prompts you on the spot, well I dont know. I guess you're right, its a little early to tell. Maybe I should ask for a trial pair and see... I remain doubtful until then


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## Bigmac (7 Mar 2007)

284_226 said:
			
		

> I'm curious...why the skepticism?  I agree it's early in development, but McMaster is one of the leading research universities in the country, and it has garnered interest from these folks, who seem to know a thing or two about resuscitation - http://www.med.upenn.edu/resuscitation/
> 
> I have no special medical training other than the old Standard First Aid and CPR, but as a tech I can say that the technology is certainly _capable_ of performing as advertised.
> 
> Biomedical technology has always been an interest of mine...although not a big enough interest to specialize in it formally.



     I am not sceptical about all biomedical technology just the glove idea. CPR is very easy to learn, but CPR alone is not the most effective. Like MedTech my personal biomedical choice is the Automated External Defibrillator (AED) which is a great invention. It is easy for a layman to use once trained and far more effective than CPR. The machine itself even talks to you and takes you step by step on what to do. You will see many facilities now that carry AEDs. I am a military medic but I do like life saving equipment that is easy to operate and can be quickly taught to non medical pers.
     See link below for more info on what an AED is and does.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Automated_external_defibrillator


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## X Royal (7 Mar 2007)

I am also a CPR & First Aid instructor. If the gloves work as stated it may promote better CPR.  My question will be how much money for a pair & how many will be bought? Technology is of little use if you do not have it readily available. Yes the AED is a good tool but it also is not always readily available.
CPR very seldom will restart a heart but does buy time. AED can restart a heart if it is fibulating but not a heart that is flat lining. Actually an AED stops the heart from fibulating & hopefully the hearts natural pacemaker takes over restarting a proper rhythm.

Rick


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## Donut (7 Mar 2007)

The Ontario Prehospital ALS Study (OPALS), preliminary results of which were presented at the Ontario Paramedicine Conference in 2004 (may have been 2005) indicated that something on the order of 80% of prehospital arrests occured in private residences.  

With that in mind, how much should public places be spending on AEDs, etc?  We spend a rediculous amount of money, as a society, on a very, very, slim chance of resuscitation.

The same study indicated that the single best predictor of survival was immediate bystander CPR.  Yes, early access to AED, and ACLS, make a difference, but it's john q public being willing to actually go over, assess the patient, and begin compressions in a timely manner that makes survival possible.  If this glove will make JQ Public more likely to actually get involved in CPR, it'll probably save more lives then all the shopping mall and office tower AEDs  out there.

Besides, I want to be able to look at the Doc in the ED and say "The Glove told me to"   ;D

2 shekels (from a guy who worked 3 arrests in the past 2 months)

DF


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## 284_226 (7 Mar 2007)

All good points.  From a layperson's point of view, I'd see it as a pretty good training tool, but not all that handy in a real-life scenario with a responder who has never done any formal CPR training.  Looking at the little screen to see if you're doing it right probably isn't conducive to actually _doing_ good CPR.

I've read up quite a bit on the AEDs.  During my last first aid course, I was shocked to learn (no pun intended) that an AED (or normal defibrillator for that matter) won't work on asystole.  Despite knowing what fibrillation was, I'd always thought that was the whole point of the shock to begin with - to restart the heart (or correct it in V-fib).  I'm a tiny bit wiser now, but I think that many people are under the same misconception.  I wonder if there have been very many real life cases where an AED has been put into use, and "no shock" has been advised to what appears to be a lifeless patient - to the complete disbelief of the user of the AED.


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## MapleLeaf4Evr (7 Mar 2007)

If this is to be used as a training tool to teach people how to properly perform CPR, it seems kind of redundant.  Measuring the depth of compressions is something that many CPR training dummies already do.  I know that a number of the mannequins that I have used make a clicking sound if the depth is too shallow/deep.  As far as I know there are also more expensive mannequins that assess the rate of comperssions as well.  Regardless, compression rates should be something that a good instructor is watching students for anyway.  Unless you actually plan to throw one of these gloves into your first aid kit, it seems like a high tech solution to a low tech problem.


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## medaid (8 Mar 2007)

*shrug* like I said  I'm biased. But like ParaMedTech said early CPR does help, but the biggest problem is going there and doing it. Not to mention doing it right  ;D All in all, if this unit is affordable i.e. $45, it would be a heck of alot better for the general public, but, that being said... instructors will lose business  : I cant decide whether or not that's a good thing or a bad thing


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## Old Ranger (18 Mar 2007)

How effective could this glove be on Obese or tiny people?

Compression depths do vary by the size and age of person, and strength of rib cage.

It could be a nice reminder, "No were going with this protocol now, you know the one we were doing three years ago!"

Money should be spent on Educating the Public and upgrading their First-Aid assesment skills.

How many times do I have to find someone trying to do CPR on a "Live" person?

How many times do I get dispatched for a VSA, only to get cancelled enroute because that same person got up and walked/staggered away?

Whoops! Starting to Rant. Yes I'm at work during a brief lull in the storm of insanity.

Does the Glove work in the cold?
Does it work Wet?
Batteries-disposable or rechargable?
How long will it last on a call?

Yes, Technology is great, but Usefull is better!

I'll trade that Glove for a good bit of Sarcastic Humour any day!

There go the tones...Cheers


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## p_imbeault (18 Mar 2007)

If I were in need of CPR I would take a trained professional over some Joe with a glove anyday. That being said I'm sure the glove would have some practical uses, but is no substitute for actual knowing how to preform proper CPR.


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