Abstract

INSFRAN, Guillermo. Knowledge of Basic life support in paraguayan medical students. Rev. cient. cienc. salud [online]. 2025, vol.7, e7112.  Epub June 16, 2025. ISSN 2664-2891.  https://doi.org/10.53732/rccsalud/2025.e7112.

Introduction. Basic life support (BLS) is critical for cardiorespiratory arrests, but previous studies in Paraguay (2017) reported only 12.7% of sufficient knowledge among medical students. Objective. To assess current BLS knowledge and associated factors in Paraguayan medical students. Materials and Methods. Cross-sectional study of 167 students from 10 universities using a validated American Heart Association questionnaire (10 items). Sufficient knowledge was defined as =70% correct answers. Statistical analysis with ?² (Epi Info v7.2.3.1). Results. 75.4% (n=126) demonstrated sufficient knowledge. Weaknesses were identified in: recognizing national emergency number (44.9% correct) and time between defibrillations without pulse (28.1%). Knowledge was significantly higher among interns (p=0.03), second-year students (p=0.003), and those trained during clinical vs. preclinical cycles (87.3% vs 12.7%; p<0.001). Conclusion. Substantial improvement exists compared to prior studies, but gaps persist in critical BLS components. Theoretical-practical training during clinical stages is associated with better performance, highlighting the need for continuous practical reinforcement.

Keywords : cardiopulmonary resuscitation; students, medical; education; basic life support.

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