Crush syndrome: How long can survivors be found?

The nurse from the Emergency Medical System (SEM) of Catalonia (Spain), expert in assisting trapped victims and survival, Ramón Pedrosa Cebador, explained that “It can take up to seven days before you lose hope of finding people alive” after an earthquake like the one that occurred a week ago in Turkey and Syria.

Pedrosa Cebador, who is a specialist in the so-called ‘crush syndrome’ and internship coordinator for the Master’s Degree in Health Emergencies and Emergencies at the International University of Catalonia (UIC), warns that many of the victims rescued from the rubble in Turkey and Syrians suffer from this syndrome, which leads to metabolic injuries and post-traumatic stress.

“The ‘crash syndrome’, or crush syndrome, occurs when a person is confined or buried and, four or six hours after being so, the body begins to release toxins, such as hemoglobin or potassium, which can be harmful and lead to in metabolic lesions, such as kidney failure or respiratory failure, and post-traumatic stress”details the specialist in initial assistance to victims of the syndrome.

The affectation of this pathology is greater in “extreme ages”that is, in advanced or pediatric ages, and in people with previous pathologies, such as heart disease or respiratory problems, since “The compensation mechanisms in both cases are not the same as those of a healthy adult, so they may have more important sequelae.”

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Assistance to trapped people

Faced with catastrophes of the magnitude of the earthquake in Turkey and Syria, “medical first aid is essential”and to carry them out “You don’t have to be a doctor or a nurse because they consist of having a first contact with the victim, reassuring her and asking her about her fears and concerns”according to the nurse.

In addition to trauma, crush syndrome leaves psychological sequelae, which is why, according to the expert, it is necessary for teams of emergency psychologists to treat post-traumatic stress in those affected, who “They follow a recovery process similar to that of soldiers or war victims.”

“The first step in assisting a trapped person must be to identify them as salvageable. Then, a triage takes place to assess the priority of treatment, which consists of assigning a label to the victim with the color that corresponds to the priority with which it is considered that she should be treated ”Pedrosa specifies.

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People who present injuries incompatible with life are assigned a black label; victims with imminently life-threatening injuries, “priority to be treated”, one red; and the yellow and green ones are, respectively, for “Those whose treatment can be delayed and those with minor injuries.”

The “saving measures” come after this classification and consist of “administer oxygen, control hypothermia and, at most, administer intravenous fluids to rehydrate the patient”who, once rescued, is transferred to a field hospital where “Triage is no longer basic, but advanced, and determines what type of treatment you should follow.”

“It is said that people can go a day without drinking and a week without eating, but the probability of finding the victims buried alive decreases significantly after 72 hours, although the United Nations argues that factors such as access to hydration the buried person or the construction material of the houses can extend the period up to five or seven days”emphasizes the specialist.

The coordinator of the practices of the master’s degree in health emergencies of the UIC warns that “the conflict in Syria is complicating the arrival of material and humanitarian resources to the areas affected by the earthquake, due to political reluctance”but he does not doubt that they will arrive, and he does not doubt the rescue efforts of the “field operative”.

Source: EFE

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