What is the recommended ratio of compressions to breaths for two rescuers performing CPR on a child?

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Multiple Choice

What is the recommended ratio of compressions to breaths for two rescuers performing CPR on a child?

When two rescuers work together on a child, the rhythm is 15 compressions followed by 2 breaths. This setup lets one rescuer keep the chest compressions steady and deep to maintain blood flow, while the other rescuer delivers ventilations with a bag–valve mask or barrier device. The result is a good balance between perfusion and oxygenation, which is especially important in children where breathing problems often start the arrest. The 15:2 ratio also helps keep interruptions in compressions to a minimum, since ventilations are timed after a set block of compressions. The other ratios don’t fit this two-rescuer pediatric standard: 30:2 is the single-rescuer guideline in children, 15:1 would provide too few breaths per cycle, and 20:2 isn’t the recommended pediatric two-rescuer ratio. Maintain a cadence of about 100–120 compressions per minute and deliver each breath in about a second with minimal pauses when switching roles.

When two rescuers work together on a child, the rhythm is 15 compressions followed by 2 breaths. This setup lets one rescuer keep the chest compressions steady and deep to maintain blood flow, while the other rescuer delivers ventilations with a bag–valve mask or barrier device. The result is a good balance between perfusion and oxygenation, which is especially important in children where breathing problems often start the arrest. The 15:2 ratio also helps keep interruptions in compressions to a minimum, since ventilations are timed after a set block of compressions.

The other ratios don’t fit this two-rescuer pediatric standard: 30:2 is the single-rescuer guideline in children, 15:1 would provide too few breaths per cycle, and 20:2 isn’t the recommended pediatric two-rescuer ratio. Maintain a cadence of about 100–120 compressions per minute and deliver each breath in about a second with minimal pauses when switching roles.

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