THE acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is a serious clinical manifestation associated with inflammation of the lungs. The problem is caused by an exaggerated response of the body in an attempt to fight infections with different origins, such as viruses and bacteria.
Former athlete Isabel Salgado, icon of Brazilian volleyball, died this Wednesday (16), at the age of 62. Isabel was infected by bacteria and the influenza virus, according to information confirmed by Pedro Solberg to CNN 🇧🇷
Isabel would have been affected by acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), according to information not yet officially confirmed by the family and by the Sírio-Libanês Hospital.
Causes of acute respiratory distress syndrome
Pneumologist Gustavo Prado, from Hospital Alemão Oswaldo Cruz, in São Paulo, explains that the condition, which has been known in the past as acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), affects both lungs and can manifest as a response from the body to pulmonary aggression of different origins.
“Among the causes are bacterial and viral infections, inhalation of toxic substances or aspiration of acidic stomach contents into the lungs, as we can have in accidental episodes of choking after vomiting”, he explains.
According to the expert, the syndrome is how the lung reacts, often disproportionately, with inflammation.
“The manifestation of this, once the alveoli are filled with inflammatory content and the vessels are affected, is a drop in our blood oxygenation capacity, which almost inevitably leads the patient to the need for intubation and mechanical ventilation”, he highlights.
serious condition
Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is a severe clinical picture characterized by symptoms such as coughing and severe shortness of breath.
“It is such a serious condition that it is extreme shortness of breath that leads to a respiratory failure which is often not amenable to stabilization at the expense of non-invasive methods, such as the use of oxygen through a catheter, mask or even that non-invasive ventilation”, explains Prado.
O diagnosis it is done through a combination of clinical criteria and radiological criteria, according to Prado.
“Through imaging, we see a pattern of bilateral pulmonary opacities, we clinically observe the onset of acute respiratory failure, monitor lower blood oxygenation values, and rule out other differential diagnoses, such as pulmonary edema in a patient with heart failure. With this composition of clinical criteria, radiological criteria and the removal of differential diagnoses, we have the diagnosis of acute respiratory distress syndrome”, he says.
Syndrome treatment
The severity of the problem indicates the need for treatment in an intensive care unit (ICU). Without continuous care, the patient can progress to complications and death.
“O treatment is the underlying cause. Because it is an inflammatory manifestation in response to another injury, then we have to treat the infection that is most often the cause of acute respiratory distress syndrome”, says the doctor.
“In addition to the clinical support of the patient, done by ensuring the need for oxygenation, elimination of carbon dioxide and very often through mechanical ventilation. He becomes a critical patient, in intensive care, with all the typical demands of a critical patient”, he concludes.
Source: CNN Brasil
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