Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS) is characterized by severe shortness of breath and a rapid heart rate, often accompanied by cough, fever, chest pain and bluish lips or fingernails caused by low O2 levels.
ARDS can be triggered by direct injuries to the lung such as pneumonia, aspiration, smoke inhalation or blunt...
Opioid-induced Respiratory Depression (OIRD), usually caused by opioid use or post-operative complications from anesthesia, occurs when the opioids desensitize the brain stem to rises in CO2, which can rapidly lead to full-blown respiratory failure. Given the growing number of 911 calls due to opioid abuse and subsequent respiratory...
Asthma is a chronic lung disease characterized by inflamed and narrowed airways. When the inflamed airways of asthma patients react strongly to certain inhaled substances, commonly referred to as an asthma attack, the outcome is a hyper-reactive airway that results in acute bronchospasm, reducing the flow of air into the lungs. Swelling...
Heart failure, aka congestive heart failure or CHF, is a condition in which fluid builds up in the lungs and chest, making it difficult for the lungs to inflate and the heart to pump.
Capno 101: What is Airway Management?
Airway management is a critical EMS skill. Simply put, a patient without an airway will not survive – but placement of an advanced airway device in critically ill and injured patients is a high-risk procedure, and a misplaced airway can cause permanent disability or death.
The capnography...
We asked for suggestions of how to best use capnography beyond its initial purpose, and EMS1 readers responded with some great advice.Take a look at our favorite comments, and please, add your own!
EMS1 sits down with Mike McEvoy, EMS coordinator for the Saratoga County (N.Y.) EMS, to discuss his hometown agency's in-field utilization of capnography to better treat their patients
By Greg Bogosian
EMS1 staff
The following is paid content sponsored by Covidien
For years, capnography has been used in the hospital setting to...
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is an umbrella term for progressive, obstructive lung diseases, including emphysema and chronic bronchitis, that are characterized by chronically poor airflow. Cigarette smoking is the most common cause of COPD, but heredity and exposure to air pollution and particulates are also...