BREATHING EMERGENCIES Respiratory Distress Respiratory Arrest Types of

BREATHING EMERGENCIES

Respiratory Distress & Respiratory Arrest ■ Types of breathing emergencies ■ Respiratory distress is a condition in which breathing becomes difficult ■ Most common breathing emergency ■ Can lead to respiratory arrest ■ Respiratory arrest is when breathing has stopped ■

Causes ■ Choking ■ Illness ■ Chronic conditions ■ Electrocution ■ Irregular heartbeat ■ Heart attack ■ Injury to head or brain stem ■ Allergic reactions ■ Drowning ■ Emotional distress

Asthma ■ The inflammation of the air passages that results in a temporary narrowing of the airways that carry oxygen to the lungs ■ Exercise, cold air, allergens or other irritants are the causes ■ Third ranking cause of hospitalization ■ Hoarse whistling sounds when exhaling (wheezing) ■ People diagnosed with asthma has medication which reduce the swelling and mucus production in the airways

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease ■ Long term lung disease encompassing both chronic bronchitis and emphysema ■ Airway becomes partly blocked and the air sacs in the lunge lose their ability to fill with air ■ No cure for COPD ■ Worsen over time ■ Most common cause if COPD is cigarettes

Common Signals of COPD ■ Coughing large volume of mucus ■ Tendency to tire easily ■ Loss of appetite ■ Bent posture with shoulders raised and lips pursed ■ Fast pulse ■ Confusion

Emphysema ■ Disease that involves damage to the air sacs in the lungs ■ Shorten of breath ■ Feels restless, confused, and weak

Bronchitis ■ Inflammation of the main air passages to the lung ■ Can be acute or chronic ■ To be diagnosed you must have a cough with mucus on most days of the month for at least 3 months ■ signs: – Chest discomfort – Fatigue – Cough with mucus – Wheezing – Fever – Shorten of breath

Choking ■ The universal sign of choking is both hand grasping their neck ■ If person is coughing forcefully, let him or her try to cough up the object ■ Person with a complete block airway needs immediate care ■ Give a combination of 5 back blows followed by 5 abdominal thrusts to help clear the airway

Back blows ■ Position yourself slightly behind the person ■ Provide support by placing one arm diagonally across the chest and bend the person forward at the waist ■ Firmly strike the person between the shoulder blades with the heel of your other hand

Abdominal thrusts ■ Stand or kneel behind the person and wrap your arm around the wait ■ Local navel with one or two fingers ■ Make fist and place thumb side against the middle of the person abdomen just about the navel ■ Grab your fist with other hand give quick upward thrust

■ Continue 5 back blows and 5 abdominal thrust until the object is dislodged, speak, breath, or cough ■ For children use less force when giving back blows and abdominal thrusts

A large or pregnant person ■ If to large to reach around or pregnant, give chest thrusts instead ■ Just like abdominal thrusts expect for placement of hands ■ Place fist at the center of person’s breastbone that grab your fist with other hand

Alone and Choking ■ Bend over and press your abdomen against a firm, object, such as a chair or railing ■ Alternatively give yourself abdominal thrusts using your hand

Choking Infant (back blows) ■ Position infant face up on forearm ■ Place one hand forearm on the child’s back, cradling the head ■ Turn the infant over so they are facing down along your forearm ■ Lower your arm to your thigh ■ Give 5 firm back blows with heel of hand

Choking infant (chest thrusts) ■ Place infant in face up position ■ Lower to your thigh ■ Place pads of two fingers in center of chest and give 5 chest compression

Conscious choking person become unconscious ■ If they become unconscious carefully lower to the ground and open the moth and look for object ■ If object is seen remove with your finger ■ If not object is seen, open person airway by tilting the head and give 2 breaths ■ If chest does not rise being CPR ■ After compression, look for object in person’s mouth