Rescue death (or reflow syndrome) is a hypothesized fatal condition that can occur after blood pools in a part of the body for a prolonged period such as during
suspension trauma. There are several proposed mechanisms for this phenomenon. One mechanism suggests that toxins build up in the pooled blood, and problems arise when this toxin-rich, oxygen-poor blood returns to the body when the patient is allowed to lie down. Another mechanism suggests that the sudden increase in
preload
Preload may refer to:
Science and technology
* Preload (cardiology), maximum stretch of the heart at the end of diastole
* preload (software), code-prefetching software for Linux
* Preload (engineering), the internal application of stress to cert ...
causes acute
heart failure
Heart failure (HF), also known as congestive heart failure (CHF), is a syndrome, a group of signs and symptoms caused by an impairment of the heart's blood pumping function. Symptoms typically include shortness of breath, excessive fatigue, a ...
. Although often discussed in lay publications on
suspension trauma, several studies systematically reviewing the medical literature have concluded that there is no evidence of this phenomenon.
Treatment
In the past, preventing a patient from lying down following suspension trauma or any other situation where blood had pooled in the legs for an extended period of time was thought to be important; instead, it was recommended that a patient should be placed in a seated position so that the blood could gradually return to the body. However, recent medical guidelines have concluded that there is insufficient evidence to recommend deviating from standard
first aid
First aid is the first and immediate assistance given to any person with either a minor or serious illness or injury, with care provided to preserve life, prevent the condition from worsening, or to promote recovery. It includes initial in ...
procedures in which an unconscious or hypotensive patient is placed in a
supine position.
Instead, treatment should consist of removing a patient from suspension and providing basic trauma care, starting with airway management (which could theoretically be impeded by requiring a patient to be kept in a seated position){{citation needed, date=May 2016.
See also
*
Suspension trauma
*
Reperfusion injury, a similar but separate condition
References
Cave rescue