Could the song “La Macarena” be the key to saving a life? A new study out of Spain says that either a song like “La Macarena” or a smartphone app to time chest compressions during cardiopulmonary resuscitation could be the answer.
The study was authored by professor Enrique Carrero Cardenal and his colleagues at the University of Barcelona, Hospital Clinic Barcelona and Universitat Autonoma Barcelona, Spain, Science Daily reported.
The research was given at the Euroanaesthesia congress in Copenhagen, Denmark. recently.
The study took a look at using either a smartphone metronome application or a musical metronome to help get a regular rhythm to time compressions.
They chose 164 medical students to do chest compressions on a mannequin for two minutes. A control group had no guidance. One group had an app to help time beats. The third group used the song, and had to prove to the scientists that they knew the tune, Science Daily reported.
The study found that the teams that used either the app or the song had a higher rate of being in the target zone of 100-120 beats per minute than the control group.
The group using the app had the best quality of compression, but there was a delay before performing the first compression. The song offered increased the rate, but not the depth of the compression. The app was found more effective after the starting delay.
The idea mimics the advice of using another popular '70s song to help time the beats of chest compressions. Heart.org says sing "Stayin' Alive" to yourself while doing chest compressions. The song has at least 100 beats a minute, The Washington Post reported in the past.
"La Macarena" was released in 1995 by Los del Rio and is one of the most famous songs in Spain, The Guardian reported.
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