Laboratory tests during resuscitation

The drawing of laboratory tests is often overlooked in the moribund patient. In patients with medical problems, potassium and other electrolyte abnormalities are often of significance and may be the cause of the arrest. Patients without circulation begin to develop severe abnormalities of PT, PTT, and potassium. These measurements will sometimes demonstrate that a patient's condition is hopeless. When laboratory tests show a situation to be hopeless, an early cessation of resuscitation efforts will be possible, and the justification for such actions will be documented. Laboratory tests drawn early in the resuscitation effort may prove that resuscitation could not have been successful.