Chapter 29 - Chest Injuries
According to the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), chest trauma causes more than______ emergency department visits annually.
700,000
Which of the following is a hazard of using a BVM? Overinflation of the lungs Increase in intrathoracic pressure Gastric distention
All of these answers are correct.
Occasionally, the object that penetrates the chest wall and creates an open chest injury remains in place. This object is referred to as:
An impaled object
Distended jugular veins, narrowing pulse pressure, and muffled heart tones are collectively known as _______.
Beck's triad
Which of the following is a sign that indicates a spinal cord injury in adults, but is normal in pediatric patients?
Breathing with the diaphragms.
An injury at which cervical vertebra can cause patients to lose their ability to breath entirely?
C3
The phrenic nerves exit the spinal cord at which cervical vertebrae?
C3, C4, C5
You are transporting a stable patient with a possible pneumothorax. The patient is receiving high-flow oxygen and has an oxygen saturation of 95%. During your reassessment, you find that the patient is now confused, hypotensive, and profusely diaphoretic. What is MOST likely causing this patient's deterioration?
Compression of the aorta and vena cava
Which of the following is NOT a function of pleural fluid?
Creates a protective area around the lungs
The sensation felt when broken bone ends grind together is called:
Crepitus
Which is considered a late sign of pneumothorax?
Cyanosis
A 40-year-old man who was the unrestrained driver of a car that hit a tree at a high rate of speed struck the steering wheel with his chest. He has a large bruise over the sternum and an irregular pulse of 120 beats/min. You should be MOST concerned that he:
Has injured his myocardium.
Signs and symptoms of a chest injury include all of the following, EXCEPT?
Hematemesis
Which of the following is NOT part of the mediastinum?
Larynx
Paradoxical motion is associated with which chest injury?
Multiple fractured ribs
During the assessment of the patients chest, the EMT observes one segment of the chest wall that moves opposite of the remainder of the chest. This is known as:
Paradoxical motion
A patient with a chest injury has a blood pressure of 100/60 mm Hg and a pulse rate of 120 beats/min. Which of the following additional findings should make you suspect a pericardial tamponade?
Repeat BP of 90/68 mm Hg
Improvised occlusive dressings may utilize all of the following, EXCEPT:
Rubber bands
Which of the following would you NOT do to treat a patient with a flail chest?
Splint the flail segment with a bulky dressing
Which of the following is NOT part of the "deadly dozen" chest injuries?
Sternal fracture
The ribs are connected in the back to the vertebrae and in the front to the_______.
Sternum
What is the risk of adding positive-pressure ventilations when you are treating a patient with a pneumothorax?
Tension pneumothorax
What occurs during the process of inhalation?
The diaphragm and intercostal muscles contract.
AN unrestrained driver is presenting with distended neck veins, cyanosis of the face and neck, and hemorrhage into the sclera of the eye. Which condition would you suspect?
Traumatic asphyxia
Almost one-third of people who are killed immediately in car crashes die as a result of:
Traumatic rupture of the aorta
Which of the following is NOT something you would do for a patient with a penetrating chest trauma?
Use an occlusive dressing and tape it down on two sides
A 19-year-old male is unresponsive, apneic, and pulseless after being struck in the center of the chest with a softball. Based on the mechanism of injury, what MOST likely occurred?
Ventricular fibrillation when the impact occurred during a critical portion of the cardiac cycle
Pneumothorax is defined as:
accumulation of air in the pleural space.
Patients with rib fractures will commonly:
breathe rapidly and shallowly.
Signs and symptoms of a tension pneumothorax include all of the following, EXCEPT:
collapsed jugular veins.
Paradoxical motion is a sign of a _______.
flail chest
Common signs and symptoms of a chest injury include all of the following, EXCEPT:
hematemesis.
The pliability of the pediatric rib cage _______.
increases the risk of internal injury
The treatment for relieving a tension pneumothorax involves:
inserting a needle through the rib cage into the pleural space.
Hemoptysis indicates damage to the _______.
lungs
The esophagus, trachea, and great vessels reside in the _______.
mediastinum
If a person's tidal volume decreases, but his or her respiratory rate remains unchanged:
minute volume will decrease.
A rapid, irregular pulse following blunt trauma to the chest is MOST suggestive of a:
myocardial contusion.
Irritation or damage to the pleural surfaces that causes sharp chest pain during inhalation is called:
pleurisy.
Following blunt trauma to the chest, an 18-year-old female presents with respiratory distress, shallow breathing, and cyanosis. Her blood pressure is 80/50 mm Hg and her pulse is 130 beats/min and thready. You should:
provide ventilation assistance with a BVM.
When assessing a patient with a hemothorax, you will MOST likely find:
signs and symptoms of shock.
Immediate death from blunt chest trauma following a motor vehicle crash is MOST often the result of:
traumatic aortic rupture.
The body's ability to move air in and out of the lungs is called _______.
ventilation
