Recovery position

In first aid, the recovery position (also called semi-prone) is one of a series of variations on a lateral recumbent or three-quarters prone position of the body, often used for unconscious but breathing casualties.

An unconscious person, a person who is assessed on the Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) at eight or below, in a supine position (on the back) may not be able to maintain an open airway as a conscious person would. This can lead to an obstruction of the airway, restricting the flow of air and preventing gaseous exchange, which then causes hypoxia, which is life-threatening. Thousands of fatalities occur every year in casualties where the cause of unconsciousness was not fatal, but where airway obstruction caused the patient to suffocate. This is especially true for unconscious pregnant women; once turned on to their left side, pressure is relieved on the inferior vena cava, and venous return is not restricted. The cause of unconsciousness can be any reason from trauma to intoxication from alcohol.

It is not necessarily used by health care professionals in an institutional setting, as they may have access to more advanced airway management techniques, such as tracheal intubation.

Purpose

The recovery position is designed to prevent suffocation through obstruction of the airway, which can occur in unconscious supine patients. The supine patient is at risk of airway obstruction from two routes:

Mechanical obstruction: In this instance, a physical object obstructs the airway of the patient. In most cases this is the patient's own tongue, as the unconsciousness leads to a loss of control and muscle tone, causing the tongue to fall to the back of the pharynx, creating an obstruction.