Correlation of spontaneous respiration and neurologic damage in near-drowning

Twenty-six near-drowning children were assessed for neurologic damage with the Glasgow Coma Score, and for spontaneous respirations after CPR. All children had a Glasgow Coma Score of 3 or 4; after resuscitation, 13 children had spontaneous respiration and 13 were apneic. The 13 children with spontaneous respiration suffered little or no residual neurologic impairment. Those children with apnea had severe neurologic impairment or died despite treatment. It appears that the present or spontaneous respirations correlated with surviving a near-drowning episode with minimal or no neurologic deficit and may be of benefit as a prognostic indicator.