What does resuscitator mean?
A resuscitator is something that helps restore a person's breathing or circulation after a medical emergency such as cardiac arrest. Today, the word most often refers to a manually operated device, commonly a bag-valve mask, that is squeezed to deliver breaths into the lungs while other resuscitation measures are performed. The related sense of someone who revives another person is older and less frequent, but it remains understandable in literary and historical contexts. The word carries strong clinical and urgent associations, yet it also conveys the positive idea of bringing someone back from a life-threatening condition. Its usefulness as a vocabulary word lies in its precise connection with resuscitation: it names the instrument or person involved in the effort to preserve life when normal physiological function has failed.
A device used to assist or restore breathing in a person experiencing respiratory or cardiac arrest.
"The nurse reached for the resuscitator and began ventilating the patient."
Most commonly used for a manually operated emergency breathing device.
A person who revives someone who has stopped breathing or whose heart has stopped.
"The physician became renowned as a resuscitator in the hospital's emergency department."
This sense is less common in contemporary clinical usage.
The plural is used when referring to more than one device or person of this kind.
"The ambulances carried portable resuscitators for use in emergencies."
A resuscitator turns a crisis into a second chance, restoring the most basic human rhythm: breathing.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does resuscitator come from?
The word is derived from the Latin verb resuscitare, meaning “to rouse again” or “revive,” formed from re- “again” and suscitare “to rouse or awaken.” It entered English in the 17th century in the sense of reviving a person or restoring consciousness and later developed a medical application to restoring breathing or circulation. Related English forms include resuscitate and resuscitation, while the same Latin root underlies the cognate French ressusciter.
Related word forms
How resuscitator is actually used
In contemporary clinical contexts, “resuscitator” usually denotes a portable manual breathing device. The sense referring to a person is understood but is much less common in modern English.
Easily confused with resuscitator
A resuscitator is a device or person that performs resuscitation, whereas resuscitate is the verb describing the act of restoring breathing or circulation.
A resuscitator is commonly a manually operated device used during immediate resuscitation, while a ventilator is generally a powered device that provides ongoing mechanical breathing support.