Acute & emergency · UKMLA & AKT
Respiratory arrest
A free high-yield preview for the UKMLA Applied Knowledge Test. Below are the key points to recognise respiratory arrest — the full SA Note notes add investigations, management, complications and 10 practice questions.
Key high-yield points
- Respiratory arrest → hypoxia → cardiac arrest within minutes if untreated
- Paediatric arrest is almost exclusively respiratory in origin - oxygenation is the priority
- Agonal breathing - slow, irregular gasps; brainstem reflex present in ~40% of arrests; must NOT be interpreted as normal breathing - begin CPR
Tension pneumothorax → one-way valve traps air → impairs venous return → reduced cardiac output → PEA. The conducting system remains intact, so organised electrical activity is present on ECG despite absent pulse.
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