Do you know your ABCDE

The Resuscitation Council (UK) (2015) recommends that dental staff should follow the ABCDE approach (box 1) when assessing (and treating) the acutely ill patient. This will help to ensure that critical illness is promptly identified and appropriated managed (Jevon, 2013). The aim of this article is to understand the ABCDE approach to the assessment of the acutely ill patient.

A – Airway

B – Breathing

C – Circulation

D – Disability

E – Exposure

(Resuscitation Council UK, 2015)

In most out-of-hospital cardiopulmonary arrests, victims have displayed signs of acute illness before collapse (Jevon, 2013). These adverse signs usually reflect compromised respiratory, cardiovascular and neurological functions (Nolan et al, 2005). For example, tachypnoea (respiratory rate > 20 per minute), tachycardia (heart rate > 100 per minute), hypotension (systolic blood pressure < 90 mmHg), chest pain (possibly indicating a heart attack) and altered level of consciousness (Resuscitation Council UK, 2015 and Jevon, 2013).