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What's inside an airplane's emergency medical kit?

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    December 17, 2022 8:05 AM EST

    What's inside an airplane's emergency medical kit?

    It's the emergency medical kit, which along with the automatic emergency defibrillator (AED) is a mandatory item, and with good reason. If you have a medical emergency in-flight, there's a whole system of in-flight medical service available, including doctors on-call, on the ground. But the only tools in the air for those doctors are in the on-board emergency medical kit.To get more news about хирурга и защитные бронежилеты, you can visit rusuntacmed.com.ru official website.

    As for the rest of the items, here's what's what:

    Non-narcotic analgesic tablets: a general oral medication used mainly to relieve muscle aches and headaches
    Oral antihistamine: medication used mainly to relieve symptoms associated with allergies and hay fever
    Aspirin: a general oral medication used mainly to alleviate head and muscle aches and chest pain or heart attack
    Atropine: medication used mainly to increase heart rate, that may be needed to assist a passenger with an unstable cardiac rhythm
    Bronchodilator inhaler: a preparation of medication used to help restore normal breathing in asthmatics
    Epinephrine 1:10,000: medication used mainly for cardiac resuscitation
    Lidocaine: medication used mainly in cases of unresponsiveness to defibrillation and possibly for maintenance of normal heart rhythm after successful defibrillation
    An IV administration set including tubing with (and, for placing the IV, alcohol sponges, tape, bandage scissors, and a tourniquet): equipment used for administering IV drugs (e.g., atropine, lidocaine, epinephrine) that may be needed to sustain heart function
    A self-inflating manual resuscitation bag (AMBU bag) (with 3 masks: 1 pediatric, 1 small adult, and 1 large adult): equipment that may be needed for continuation of respiratory support
    CPR mask (1 pediatric, 1 small adult, 1 large adult): equipment that may be needed to protect a person while administering CPR
    Airlines will stock more than what is required. For example, you'll notice there's no anti-nausea medication required in the list, but nausea is the most common in-flight medical call. And there are no EpiPens to treat common emergency events such as peanut allergies.
    For example, Delta says it "has equipped all of its aircraft with an automated external defibrillator (AED), enhanced emergency medical kit, first aid kit, oxygen, medical accessory pouch, Universal Precaution Kit – used to protect against and dispose of bodily fluids – and a medical communication headset. The airline's emergency medical equipment on board exceeds the minimum requirements set by the Federal Aviation Administration."

    So what happens on the next flight, when the kit has been opened and, say, nitroglycerine administered? When items in the kit are used up during a flight, the airline is required to take an inventory and restock prior to the next flight. To avoid delay, airlines will carry more than one medical kit, or stock more items than are necessary.

    Last but not least is the AED, the automatic external defibrillator. It's automatic because it guides the user with voice instructions and diagnoses the patient through sensors.

    An AED is required for aircraft with 30 passengers or more (generally, because it's based on the weight of the aircraft), requiring at least one flight attendant. It wasn't always that way.