👤 By the CinnaEMS Content Team🕐 Updated 2026-09-27🏷️ Primary Assessment🔖 Free to read, print, and share
Also known as: CPR · AED · cardiac arrest · BLS · compressions
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Use this quick-reference guide to recognise, treat and hand over CPR & AED by the Numbers on the NREMT and on the call. Keep it handy during review and on exam day!
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📒 The 1-minute cheat sheet
📌 Adult
100–120/min · 2–2.4 in
30:2 (1 or 2 rescuers)
Pulse check 10 s max
📌 Child / Infant
~2 in / ~1.5 in (one-third of chest)
30:2 alone · 15:2 with two
Infant pulse: brachial
HR under 60 + poor perfusion → compress
📌 Aed
Dry chest · patch off · 1 in from a device
Shock → compressions right away, 2 min
📌 2025
Choking: 5 back blows + 5 thrusts
Infant: two-thumb or heel of hand
📚 CPR & AED by the Numbers — full study notes
The cheat sheet above is your quick recall card. These notes go deeper — what it is, what to do first, what changes the plan, and what to hand over.
Cardiac arrest care is examined as numbers and sequence. Survival depends on compressions that are fast enough, deep enough and rarely interrupted, and on getting a shock to a shockable rhythm early. The 2025 AHA guidelines changed the choking sequence and infant compression technique.
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Key points
Understand these first
Adult: 100–120 per minute, 2–2.4 inches deep, 30:2 with one or two rescuers.
Child about 2 inches and infant about 1.5 inches — one-third of chest depth. 30:2 alone, 15:2 with two.
Check breathing and pulse together for no more than 10 seconds; infant pulse at the brachial artery.
Child with a pulse below 60 and poor perfusion despite good ventilation: start compressions.
AED: power on, pads on bare dry skin, clear for analysis and shock, compressions immediately after.
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Treatment priorities
What to do, in order
Compressions start as soon as arrest is recognized — agonal gasps are not breathing.
Minimize every pause: under 10 seconds for rhythm checks and shocks.
Rotate compressors about every 2 minutes.
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Red flags — report now
Escalate immediately
Agonal gasps mistaken for breathing
Shallow compressions or leaning on the chest
Long pauses around the shock
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Patient teaching
What patients must know
Choking (2025): 5 back blows, then 5 abdominal thrusts; infants get chest thrusts.
Infant compressions: two-thumb encircling or heel of one hand — two-finger is retired.
❓ CPR & AED by the Numbers: NREMT FAQs
What are the priority actions for CPR & AED by the Numbers in the field?
Compressions start as soon as arrest is recognized — agonal gasps are not breathing. Minimize every pause: under 10 seconds for rhythm checks and shocks. Rotate compressors about every 2 minutes.
What findings in CPR & AED by the Numbers change your plan or your transport decision?
Agonal gasps mistaken for breathing. Shallow compressions or leaning on the chest. Long pauses around the shock.
What do I need to know about CPR & AED by the Numbers for the NREMT?
Adult: 100–120 per minute, 2–2.4 inches deep, 30:2 with one or two rescuers. Child about 2 inches and infant about 1.5 inches — one-third of chest depth. 30:2 alone, 15:2 with two. Check breathing and pulse together for no more than 10 seconds; infant pulse at the brachial artery. Child with a pulse below 60 and poor perfusion despite good ventilation: start compressions.
What should the crew communicate or document for CPR & AED by the Numbers?
Choking (2025): 5 back blows, then 5 abdominal thrusts; infants get chest thrusts. Infant compressions: two-thumb encircling or heel of one hand — two-finger is retired.
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Quick Tip
Adult: 100–120 per minute, 2–2.4 inches deep, 30:2 with one or two rescuers.