Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS) - Pathophysiology, Management, and pH Changes

Running head: ARDS
ARDS
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1
ARDS
Question 1:
Acute respiratory distress syndrome called the ARDS is a kind of severe lung condition
that occurs when the fluid is seen to fill up the air sacs in the lungs. When there remains too
much fluid in the lungs, it is mainly seen to lower the amount of the oxygen and increase of the
amount of carbon dioxide in the blood stream. It can lead to organ failure by preventing the
organs to get enough oxygen required for their functioning. Inflammation may result from sepsis
due to viral pneumonia where respiratory viruses may cause dysfunctioning of the endothelial
cells along with fluid leakage from the capillaries as well as impairment of the drainage of fluid
from the lungs. A respiratory burst may result in the immune cells in this stage. In the second
stage, dys-functioning of the endothelial cells results in the cells as well as the inflammatory
exudates in entering the portions of the alveoli. There will be increase in the pulmonary edema
that in turn results in increasing the thickness as well as the breadth of the layers that separate
the blood which is present in the capillary from the different types of regions of the space in the
air sacs. This is seen to be increasing the distance that the amount of the oxygen has to undertake
diffusion diffuse for reaching the blood. As a result, there is impairment of gas exchange causing
hypoxia, increased work of breathing. This also results in scarring of air spaces within the lungs.
Accumulation of fluid in the lungs along with the decreasing of the surfactant production type 2
pneumocytes results in collapsing of the air sacs or complete filled with fluid resulting in loss of
aeration and further right to left shunt in ARDs. In the patient as well, it is seen that he was
suffering from viral pneumonia and he was having respiratory difficulty. This is obvious from
his high respiratory rate of about 26 breaths per minute. Moreover, it is also seen in his chest
radiograph that he was having mild alveolar infiltrates. Therefore, this pathophysiology can be
applied to this patient.