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USLA - Heimlich Letters, Maneuver for Drowning Case Report Evidence
A recent exchange of letters between the medical advisor of the United
States Lifesaving Association (USLA) and Dr. Henry J. Heimlich has been posted on the USLA website. The March 31, 2004 letter to Dr. Heimlich requests specific documentation for two medical case reports of alleged drowning rescues which Heimlich published in American Lifeguard Magazine. The letter requests any evidence to support Dr. Heimlich's version of events: hospital reports, EMT run sheets, lifeguard reports, interviews with victims and witnesses, etc. Since 1974, despite widespread criticism from virtually ever expert in the field, Dr. Heimlich has touted these same two cases as primary evidence that the Heimlich maneuver should be used to rescue drowning victims. Interestingly, both of the two alleged drowning cases originated with medical doctors who had long-standing prior relationships with Dr. Heimlich, a fact none of them have publicly addressed. The doctors are Victor H. Esch of Potomac, MD, and Edward A. Patrick of Union, KY. Dr. Heimlich published the Esch & Patrick cases in peer-reviewed journals (including JAMA) and presented them to national committees of the Institute of Medicine in 1993 and to the American Heart Association (AHA) in 1985. After that 1985 conference, apparently based on no evidence except for these two cases, the AHA and American Red Cross incorporated the Heimlich maneuver into national drowning rescue protocols, as a secondary response if CPR fails. In his April 19, 2004 response to the USLA request, Dr. Heimlich claims he has no documentation of any kind for either case. Both letters may be found at: http://www.usla.org/PublicInfo/lfg_library.asp Or just click here for the pdf file: http://www.usla.org/PublicInfo/libra...lyMARAPR04.pdf For additional related documents: http://heimlichinstitute.com/Related_Files.html Despite the lack of any medical evidence to support its use and the fact that it has been shown to be dangerous, even lethal, the Heimlich maneuver for drowning rescue continues to be promoted by the Heimlich Institute (under the auspices of Deaconess Associations, Inc., Cincinnati) and remains in the drowning rescue protocols of the American Red Cross: http://www.heimlichinstitute.org/maneuver.html Interested parties may wish to contact the Heimlich Institute, Deaconess Associations, the American Red Cross, the United States Lifesaving Association, or other organizations. -END- |
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