Airway Management Flashcards
The upper tract or the passage above the larynx, which includes the nose, mouth, and throat.
Airway
The volume of air moved through the lungs in 1 minute minus the dead space; calculated by multiplying tidal volume (minus dead space) and respiratory rate.
Alveolar minute volume
The volume of air that reaches the alveoli. It is determined by subtracting the amount of dead space air from the tidal volume.
Alveolar ventilation
A safety system for large oxygen cylinders, designed to prevent the accidental attachment of a regulator to a cylinder containing the wrong type of gas.
American Standard Safety System
Absence of spontaneous breathing.
Apnea
In the context of airway, the introduction of vomitus or other foreign material into the lungs.
Aspiration
Irregular, ineffective respirations that may or may not have an identifiable pattern.
Ataxic respirations
A ventilation device attached to a control box that allows the variables of ventilation to be set. It frees the EMT to perform other tasks while the patient is being ventilated.
Autonomic transport ventilator
A device with a one-way valve and a face mask attached to a ventilation bag; when attached to a reservoir and connected to oxygen, it delivers more than 90% supplemental oxygen.
Bag-valve mask
A protective item, such as a pocket mask with a valve, that limits exposure to a patient’s body fluids.
Barrier device
Subdivision of the smaller bronchi in the lungs; made of smooth muscle and dilate or constrict in response to various stimuli.
Bronchioles
The use of a capnometer, a device that measures the amount of expired carbon dioxide.
Capnometry
Point at which the trachea bifurcates (divides) into the left and right mainstem bronchi.
Carina
Monitor the levels of o2, co2, and the pH of the cerebrospinal fluid and then provide feedback to the respiratory centers to modify the rate and depth of breathing based on the body’s needs at any given time.
Chemoreceptors
The ability of the alveoli to expand when air is drawn in during inhalation.
Compliance
A method of ventilation used primarily in the treatment of critically ill patients with respiratory distress; can prevent the need for endotracheal intubation.
Continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP)
The amount of carbon dioxide present at the end of an exhaled breath.
End-tidal co2
The passive part of the breathing process in which the diaphragm and the intercostal muscles relax, forcing air out of the lungs.
Exhalation
The exchange of gases between the lungs and the blood cells in the pulmonary capillaries; also called pulmonary respiration.
External respiration
A normal reflex mechanism that causes retching; activated by touching the soft palate or the back of the throat.
Gag reflex
A condition in which air fills the stomach, often as a result of high volume and pressure during artificial ventilation.
Gastric distention
A term used to distinguish the degree of distress in a patient with a mild airway obstruction. With this, the patient is still conscious and able to cough forcefully, although wheezing may be heard.
Good air exchange
A combination of two movements to open the airway by tilting the forehead back and lifting the chin; not used for trauma patients.
Head tilt-chin lift maneuver
Increased carbon dioxide level in the bloodstream.
Hypercarbia
A dangerous condition in which the body’s tissues and cells do not have enough oxygen.
Hypoxia
The active, muscular part of breathing that draws air into the airway and lungs; also a medication delivery route.
Inhalation
The exchange of gases between the blood cells and the tissues.
Internal respiration
Bypassing of oxygen-poor blood past nonfunctional alveoli to the left side of the heart.
Intrapulmonary shunting
Technique to open the airway by placing the fingers behind the angle of the jaw and bringing the jaw forward; used for patients who may have a cervical spine injury.
Jaw-thrust maneuver
A complex structure formed by many independent cartilaginous structures that all work together; where the upper airway ends and the lower airway begins; also called the voice box.
Larynx
A fixed flow rate ventilation device that delivers a breath every time its button is pushed; also referred to as a flow-restricted, oxygen-powered ventilation device.
Manually triggered ventilation device
Space within the chest that contains the heart, major blood vessels, vagus nerve, trachea, major bronchi, and esophagus; located between the two lungs.
Mediastinum
Occurs when a foreign body partially obstructs the patient’s airway. The patient is able to move adequate amounts of air, but also experiences some degree of respiratory distress.
Mild airway obstruction
An oxygen-delivery device in which oxygen flows through two small, tubelike prongs that fit into the patient’s nostrils; delivers 24% to 44% supplemental oxygen, depending on the flow rate.
Nasal cannula
Airway adjunct inserted into the nostril of an unresponsive patient or a patient with an altered level of consciousness who is unable to maintain airway patency independently.
Nasopharyngeal airway
A combination mask and reservoir bag system that is the preferred way to give oxygen in the prehospital setting; delivers up to 90% inspired oxygen and prevents inhaling the exhaled gases (carbon dioxide).
No re breathing mask
Airway adjunct inserted into the mouth of an unresponsive patient to keep the tongue from blocking the upper airway and to facilitate suctioning the airway, if necessary.
Oropharyngeal airway
A condition of excessive oxygen consumption resulting in cellular and tissue damage.
Oxygen toxicity
The process of delivering oxygen to the blood by diffusion from the alveoli following inhalation into the lungs.
Oxygenation
Thin membrane that lines the chest cavity.
Parietal pleura
Describes the amount of gas in air or dissolved in fluid, such as blood.
Partial pressure
The act of air moving in and out of the lungs during chest compressions.
Passive ventilation
Open, clear of obstruction.
Patent
Nerve that innervates the diaphragm; necessary for adequate breathing to occur.
Phrenic nerve
A system established for portable cylinders to ensure that a regulator is not connected to a cylinder containing the wrong type of gas.
Pin-indexing system
A partial or complete accumulation of air in the pleural space.
Pneumothorax
A term used to describe the degree of distress in a patient with a mild airway obstruction. With this, the patient often has a weak, ineffective cough, increased difficulty breathing, or possible cyanosis and may produce a high-pitched noise during inhalation (stridor).
Poor air exchange
A side-lying position used to maintain a clear airway in unconscious patients who are breathing adequately and do not have suspected injuries to the spine, hips, or pelvis.
Recovery position
Occurs when a foreign body completely obstructs the patient’s airway. The patient cannot breathe, talk, or cough.
Severe airway obstruction
An opening through the skin and into an organ or other structure; for example, in the neck, it connects the trachea directly to the skin.
Stoma
A hollow, cylindrical device used to remove fluid from the patient’s airway.
Suction catheter
A liquid protein substance that coats the alveoli in the lungs, decreases alveolar surface tension, and keeps the alveoli expanded; a low level in a premature infant contributes to respiratory distress syndrome.
Surfactant
An accumulation of air or gas in the pleural space that progressively increases pressure in the chest that interferes with cardiac function with potentially fatal results.
Tension pneumothorax
Large, semirigid suction tips recommended for suctioning the pharynx; also called Yankauer tips.
Tonsil tips
A surgical procedure to create an opening (stoma) into the trachea; a stoma in the neck connects the trachea directly to the skin.
Tracheostomy
Thin membrane that covers the lungs.
Visceral pleura
The amount of air that can be forcibly expelled from the lungs after breathing in as deeply as possible.
Vital capacity
Thin white bands of tough muscular tissue that are lateral borders of the glottis and serve as the primary center for speech production.
Vocal cords
