Can you do the Heimlich Maneuver on an Infant?

The Heimlich Maneuver is very effective technique to dislodge an object stuck in someone's trachea, but how do we do it on infants? Even if you have never taken a CPR or First Aid class, I am sure you are familiar with the Heimlich Maneuver. You have seen it in action in movies, and maybe even in real life. The responder wraps their arms around a choking victim from behind and squeezes with a pressure to the upper abdomen, which causes an upward force on the foreign object that is lodged in the trachea. This is a well known move with a pretty high efficacy rate. The question is however, can we use this same technique on an infant?

To set the table a bit, let's get some definitions out of the way. The word "infant" refers to any person that is between 0 and 12 months old. This is an important distinction because the technique for conscious choking changes after the baby has surpassed 12 months. The Heimlich Maneuver is defined by the pressure to the upper abdomen (think two fingers below the xiphoid process). This is why the Heimlich is often referred to as "abdominal thrusts". It is NOT recommended to do the Heimlich Maneuver on an infant.

If the Heimlich is such an efficient move, why don't we use it on infants? A lot of things are still developing on the infant, including their internal organs. Using abdominal thrusts on infants could potentially damage their organs without doing too much to expel the object stuck in the throat. There is also a school of thought that believes the Heimlich Maneuver works because it is a reactionary technique. We place a lot of pressure in a certain place on the body, and it is how that body reacts to the pressure that causes the "forced cough" or upward force on the stuck object. Infants are still developing that reaction, so the Heimlich is not as effective on them. Then what do we do if an infant is choking?

If an infant is choking, and they are unable to cough, cry, or breath effectively, we have to take action. We start by holding the infant face down on our forearm while supporting the infant's head and jaw with our hand, and give 5 firm back blows with the palm of the hand between the infant's shoulder blades.

If the back blows do not dislodge the object, turn the infant over onto its back supporting the head, and give 5 chest compressions. The compressions will be the same we use for CPR, two fingers in the center of the chest on the sternum (right around nipple level).

We continue with these two techniques, 5 back blows and 5 chest compressions, until the situation changes. Either the object comes out, or the infant loses consciousness (in which case the most effective technique changes).

So, can we do the Heimlich Maneuver on an infant? In short, no. The 5 chest compressions take the place of the Heimlich Maneuver for infants as it is safer and more effective.

If you want to practice these conscious choking techniques, check out our Baby Safety Class. This in-home class covers infant and child CPR, infant and child choking intervention, and SIDS prevention. If you’re in Salt Lake City area and want to feel more confident responding to an emergency situation with infants and children, click the link below and book your hands-on class today.

Baby Safety Class