An innovative porcine model of pediatric drowning

Worldwide, children between the ages of 0 and 4 years have the highest rate of drowning incidents. Hypoxia is the most detrimental consequence of drowning incidents. Therefore, restoration of oxygenation, ventilation, and perfusion is of the utmost importance and should be restored as rapidly as possible via adequate airway management and respiratory support during cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). Optimizing the CPR technique used following drowning incidents in children, has the potential to improve survival. There is currently extremely limited scientific knowledge regarding the optimal CPR technique for pediatric drowning victims. Indeed, there is no pediatric animal drowning model currently available, which makes our model unique. Our model lays the foundation for future pre-clinical and clinical studies and will also provide critical scientific knowledge used to guide resuscitation recommendations.