Diagnosis and Treatment of Respiratory Failure

-Introduction-

Abstract

Respiratory failure is present in patients whose arterial carbon dioxide exceeds, or the arterial oxygen (in the absence of a cardiac shunt) falls below normal levels when breathing air is at normal atmospheric pressure. It is appropriate to use the word respiratory failure as a physiological diagnosis only when the blood gas studies reveal abnormal values.
Pulmonary failure, on the other hand, is a clinical term to describe the condition of patients with breathlessness or dyspnea caused by lung diseases. The blood gas values are determined by ventilation, perfusion and ventilation-perfusion ratio. Disturbance of one of these factors could leads to the blood gas abnormalities.
Each speaker should discuss the crucial points of diagnosis and the causes of respiratory or pulmonary failure in lung and heart diseases. In their discussi on, the treatments are also mentioned the following points. 1) maintenance of airways, 2) oxygen therapy, 3) Disturbance of acid base balance, 4) prophylaxis.