I cared for the patient who suffered blunt chest trauma and who was in respiratory distress.
My patient was middle aged male who fell off his motorcycle and, as a result of the fall, obtained multiple rib fractures and pneumothorax. CT scan and chest X-ray indicated that he also had bilateral lung atelectasis at the bases. The breathing pattern was irregular, characterized by shallow, rapid respirations at the rate of 30-40 breaths/minute. His oxygen saturation fluctuated between 78-83% on room air and 92-94% on 10L non-rebreather mask. RT was at the bedside and monitored the patient’s airway. Towards the end of the stay in ED, thoracic surgeon inserted chest tube and the patient was prepared for the transfer to the ICU.
I was surprised …show more content…
al. (2014) conducted systemic review regards effects of the non-invasive ventilation. The trials with the patients who did not qualify for non-invasive ventilation were excluded (Roberts, Skinner, Biccard & Rodseth,, 2014, p. 555). The researchers discovered that the patients with blunt chest trauma who did not undergo invasive ventilation procedures spent less time in ICU, were discharged sooner from the hospital and had lower pneumonia rates (Roberts et al., 2014, p. 556). However, no correlation was found between morality rates and ventilation methods (Roberts et al., 2014, p. 556).
In this case, the thoracic surgeon and RT opted for non-invasive ventilation method. The patient was “conscious, maintaining an airway, haemodynamically stable, co-operative, [and did] not need immediate surgery” (Roberts et al., 2014, p. 556), and he received the most optimal treatment options for his condition.
Before this event, I thought that severe lung injuries accompanied with rib fractures and significant respiratory distress required more aggressive interventions for better outcomes. In other departments, such as medical surgical floor or telemetry unit, I learned that any significant changes in breathing were considered emergency and required immediate attention and RT presence, even if they were less life-threatening. In this case, I was surprised that the management of the breathing did not differ drastically from the measures I observed previously in other
My patient was middle aged male who fell off his motorcycle and, as a result of the fall, obtained multiple rib fractures and pneumothorax. CT scan and chest X-ray indicated that he also had bilateral lung atelectasis at the bases. The breathing pattern was irregular, characterized by shallow, rapid respirations at the rate of 30-40 breaths/minute. His oxygen saturation fluctuated between 78-83% on room air and 92-94% on 10L non-rebreather mask. RT was at the bedside and monitored the patient’s airway. Towards the end of the stay in ED, thoracic surgeon inserted chest tube and the patient was prepared for the transfer to the ICU.
I was surprised …show more content…
al. (2014) conducted systemic review regards effects of the non-invasive ventilation. The trials with the patients who did not qualify for non-invasive ventilation were excluded (Roberts, Skinner, Biccard & Rodseth,, 2014, p. 555). The researchers discovered that the patients with blunt chest trauma who did not undergo invasive ventilation procedures spent less time in ICU, were discharged sooner from the hospital and had lower pneumonia rates (Roberts et al., 2014, p. 556). However, no correlation was found between morality rates and ventilation methods (Roberts et al., 2014, p. 556).
In this case, the thoracic surgeon and RT opted for non-invasive ventilation method. The patient was “conscious, maintaining an airway, haemodynamically stable, co-operative, [and did] not need immediate surgery” (Roberts et al., 2014, p. 556), and he received the most optimal treatment options for his condition.
Before this event, I thought that severe lung injuries accompanied with rib fractures and significant respiratory distress required more aggressive interventions for better outcomes. In other departments, such as medical surgical floor or telemetry unit, I learned that any significant changes in breathing were considered emergency and required immediate attention and RT presence, even if they were less life-threatening. In this case, I was surprised that the management of the breathing did not differ drastically from the measures I observed previously in other