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\/f Physicians Committee
XVlVl For Responsible Medicine
5100 Wisconsin Avenue Northwest . Suite 404 . Washington, DC 20016
(202) 686-2210 . fax (202) 686-2216

News Release David B. Wasser, Media Director

For Immediate Release August 19,1994

Doctors Blast New Report on Heimlich Maneuver

500 Lives a Year May Be Lost While Experiments Drag On

In spite of numerous instances in which drowning victims were saved using the Heimlich
maneuver, a new report from the Institute of Medicine says the maneuver should not be used for
expelling water from the lungs until more dog drowning experiments prove that it works in dogs.

The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) and the man who invented the
maneuver himself, Dr. Henry Heimlich of Cincinnati, Ohio, attack the new report as seriously flawed.
The doctors say experiments in which dogs have been drowned and treated with the Heimlich
maneuver were tried, and proved nothing new. Medical journals had already reported that the
Heimlich maneuver removes water from the lungs of humans. In addition, the tests were cruel,
unnecessary and inhumane.
"
While bureaucrats procrastinate and call for more animal studies lives will be lost." says Dr.
,

Heimlich, who has estimated that 500 lives a year can be saved by the widespread use of his
maneuver at beaches and pools. The Heimlich Maneuver clears water out of the lungs and makes ,

standard life-saving techniques like mouth-to-mouth and CPR more effective. In one study , the
Heimlich Maneuver saved 87% of pulseless non-breathing drowning victims, compared to 28%
,

using only mouth-to-mouth and CPR. Drowning is the leading cause of death for children 1 -4 years
old in 18 states, and occurs mostly in residential pools.
"
The knee-jerk call for more animal experiments will result in thousands of pointless deaths ,
"

says Dr. Heimlich. Adds Neal Barnard, M.D., President of PCRM The Heimlich maneuver has
,

already saved so many lives, it should be part of standard procedure in treating drowning victims .

More cruel dog drowning experiments won't tell us anything we don't already know .
"

Some of the people who have successfully used the Heimlich maneuver to save drowning
victims are willing to speak out on the issue. Their telephone numbers and stories are listed below:
-
Victor Esch, M.D. of Baltimore Maryland, was the first person to use the Heimlich maneuver to save
,

a drowning person. He did it in 1974 at Rehobeth Beach in Delaware after a lifeguard present said
,
 '_'.:j .... _- • _. -,

I C. L_ H U

the victim was dead. Dr. Esch can be reached at 301 299-3912.

- Susan Hill of Des Moines, Iowa saved her 18 month old grandson after he had been under water
,

for almost 15 minutes. Ms. Hill can be reached at 515 223-1273.

- Edward A .
Patrick M.D. of Anderson, Ohio, used the Heimlich maneuver to save a two year old
after 20 minutes of mouth to mouth and CPR failed to revive the child. Dr. Patrick can be reached
at 513 474-6183.

Ted Young of Duncan, British Columbia, saved an 11 year old with the Heimlich maneuver after
lifeguards tried mouth to mouth and CPR, with no response. He can be reached at 418 746-6973.
- Todd Schebor a landscape contractor from Cincinnati, Ohio, heard cries of help from a nearby
,

swimming pool, and used the maneuver to save eight year old Natasha Stuckey. Todd can be reached
at 513 530-9653.

-
Terry Watkins, an Emergency Medical Technician and Chief of the Destin, Florida Fire Department
had read an article about the maneuver to save drowning victims. He was able to use it to save
Shawn Alexander, age 4, who was already unconscious and had turned blue despite mouth-to-
mouth given by a bystander, Terry can be reached at 904 827-2357.
-
Pam Maynard of New Orleans, Louisiana and her husband saved their 20 month old daughter,
,

Morgan, after she had been submerged in a swimming pool for approximately four minutes. Although
they were trained in CPR, they used the Heimlich maneuver first, and that was sufficient. They are
convinced the Heimlich maneuver not only expelled the water from her lungs, but also "jumpstarted"
her breathing. The Maynards can be reached at 504 895-6746.

Note: Dr. Heimlich can be reached at 513 221-0002.

 T)/ T A/f Physicians Commit
1 V lviVl For Responsible Medicine
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5100 Wisconsin Avenue Northwest . Suite 404 . Washington, DC 20016

(202) 686-2210 . FAX (202) 686-2216

News Release David B. Wasscr, Media Director

For Immediate Release

What's the Most Important Thing To Bring To The Beach This

Summer?
Knowledge of the Heimlich Maneuver To Save Drowning Victims

The Heimlich Maneuver has long been used to save the lives of choking victims. Posters
in restaurants show customers how to apply the technique, and it has saved nearly 50,000 lives in
the U.S. over the past twenty years. Now two public-interest groups have launched an information
campaign to let people know that the Heimlich Maneuver can also save the lives of drowning
victims.

The campaign follows on the heels of studies which show that the Heimlich Maneuver
clears water out of the lungs and makes standard life-saving techniques for drowning victims like
mouth-to-mouth and CPR far more effective. In one study, the Heimlich Maneuver saved 87% of
pulseless, non-breathing drowning victims, compared to 28% using only mouth-to-mouth and
CPR.

The American Red Cross now includes the Heimlich Maneuver as part of its training .

Unfortunately, it never used to and lifeguards have a lot of catching up to do. A study of Seattle
,

public swimming pools found that almost half (42%) of children pulled from the water did not
survive (Pediatrics, June 1989). In each case a lifeguard was present, but only mouth to mouth
and CPR were used, not the Heimlich Maneuver. Drowning is the leading cause of accidental
death for children 1-4 years old in 18 states. Most victims are treated by untrained laypersons .
The
Heimlich Maneuver is easy to learn and takes only seconds to perform. It could save 500 children
this year who otherwise would have died. As Dr. Henry Heimlich says you can t get air into the
,
" '

lungs until you get the water out .

"

The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) has teamed up with the
Heimlich Institute to produce a public service video in which Dr. Heimlich demonstrates the
maneuver he invented and PSAs for newspapers and magazines which ask the question "What's
,

the most important thing you can take to the beach this summer?" (Answer; It's Not a Towel ,

Trunks or Suntan Oil. It's Knowledge Of The Heimlich Maneuver ) .

I t t
from the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine
Heimlich Opposes Dog-
Drowning Experiments
n spite of numerous instances in which
Idrowning victims were saved using the
Heimlich maneuver, a new report from
the Institute of Medicine says the maneu-
ver should not be used for expelling water
from the lungs until more dog drowning
experiments prove that it works in dogs.
The Physicians Committee for Respon-
sible Medicine (PCRM) and the man who
invented the maneuver, Dr. Henry Heim-
lich of Cincinnati, Ohio, attack the new
report as seriously flawed. The doctors say
University of Pittsburgh experiments in
which dogs were drowned and treated with
the Heimlich maneuver proved nothing
new. Medical journals had already reported
that the Heimlich maneuver removes wa-
ter from the lungs of humans. In addition,
the tests were cruel, unnecessary and in-
humane.
"
While bureaucrats procrastinate and
call for more animal studies, lives will be
lost," says Dr. Heimlich, who has estimated
that 500 lives a year can be saved by the
widespread use of his maneuver at beaches
and pools. The Heimlich Maneuver clears
water out of the lungs, and makes stan-
dard life-saving techniques like mouth-
to-mouth and CPR more effective. In one
study, the Heimlich Maneuver saved 87
percent of pulseless, non-breathing drown-
ing victims, compared to 28 percent using
only mouth-to-mouth and CPR. Drown-
ing is the leading cause of death for chil-
dren 14 years old in 18 states, and occurs
mostly in residential pools.
"
The knee-jerk call for more animal
experiments will result in thousands of
"
pointless deaths, says Dr. Heimlich. Adds
Neal Barnard, M.D., President of PCRM,
"
The Heimlich maneuver has already saved
so many lives, it should be part of stan-
Volume III, Number 4
dard procedure in treating drowning vic-
tims. More cruel dog drowning experi-
>
>
ments won t tell us anything we don t
"
already know.
Here are some of the people who have
successfully used the Heimlich maneuver
to save drowning victims:
Victor Esch, M.D. of Baltimore, Mary-
land, was the first person to use the Heim-
lich maneuver to save a drowning person.
He did it in 1974 at Rehoboth Beach in
Delaware, after a lifeguard present said the
victim was dead.
Edward A. Patrick M.D. of Anderson,
Ohio, used the Heimlich maneuver to save
a two year old after 20 minutes of mouth
to mouth and CPR failed to revive the
child.
Ted Young of Duncan, British Colum-
bia, saved an 11 year old with the Heim-
lich maneuver after lifeguards tried mouth
to mouth and CPR, with no response.
Todd Schebor, a landscape contractor
from Cincinnati, Ohio, heard cries of help
from a nearby swimming pool, and used
the maneuver to save eight year old
Natasha Stuckey. He had seen PCRM's
video demonstrating the ma-
neuver.
Terry Watkins, an Emer-
gency Medical Technician and
Chief of the Destin, Florida Fire
Department had read an article
about the maneuver to save
drowning victims. He was able
to use it to save Shawn Alexander, age 4,
who was already unconscious and had
turned blue despite mouth-to-mouth
given by a bystander.
To ask the Institute of Medicine, a
branch of the National Research Council,
to call for an end to dog drowning experi-
ments, contact them at:
The Institute of Medicine
Division of Health Promotion and
Disease Prevention
2101 Constitution Ave. N.W.
Washington, DC 20418
(202) 334-2383 or (202) 334-2169 ii