[Cardiopulmonary resuscitation. Support of circulation]

Whether the cause is primary or secondary, cardiac arrest requires cardiopulmonary resuscitation techniques in order to avoid brain lesions. Cardiac compressions combined with the control of the air passageway and artificial respiration have made it possible to reverse clinical death status in a patient. In this article, the authors review various proven methods including heart pump, thoracic pump, asynchronous respiration, abdominal contrapulsation, cardiopulmonary resuscitation by means of coughing, MAST, ADC, pneumatic vest, etc. which are currently in use.