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Stridor
Stridor () is an extra-thoracic high-pitched breath sound resulting from turbulent air flow in the larynx or lower in the bronchial tree. It is different from a stertor, which is a noise originating in the pharynx. Stridor is a physical sign which is caused by a narrowed or obstructed airway. It can be inspiratory, expiratory or biphasic, although it is usually heard during inspiration. Inspiratory stridor often occurs in children with croup. It may be indicative of serious airway obstruction from severe conditions such as epiglottitis, a foreign body lodged in the airway, or a laryngeal tumor. Stridor should always command attention to establish its cause. Visualization of the airway by medical experts equipped to control the airway may be needed. Causes Stridor may occur as a result of: * foreign bodies (e.g., aspirated foreign body, aspirated food bolus); * infections (e.g., epiglottitis, retropharyngeal abscess, croup); * subglottic stenosis (e.g., following prol ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Croup
Croup ( ), also known as croupy cough, is a type of respiratory infection that is usually caused by a virus. The infection leads to swelling inside the trachea, which interferes with normal breathing and produces the classic symptoms of "barking/brassy" cough, inspiratory stridor, and a hoarseness, hoarse voice. Fever and runny nose may also be present. These symptoms may be mild, moderate, or severe. It often starts or is worse at night and normally lasts one to two days. Croup can be caused by a number of viruses including parainfluenza and influenza virus. Rarely is it due to a bacterial infection. Croup is typically diagnosed based on signs and symptoms after potentially more severe causes, such as epiglottitis or an airway foreign body, have been ruled out. Further investigations, such as blood tests, X-rays and cultures, are usually not needed. Many cases of croup are preventable by immunization for influenza and diphtheria. Most cases of croup are mild and the patie ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Stertor
Stertor () is a term first used in 1804 to describe a noisy breathing sound, such as snoring.O Cathain E, Gaffey MMUpper Airway Obstruction In: StatPearls. StatPearls Publishing, Treasure Island (FL); 2020. It is caused by partial obstruction of the upper airways, at the level of the nasopharynx or oropharynx. It is distinguished from stridor by its pitch. Stertor is low-pitched, and can occur when breathing in, out Out or OUT may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films *Out (1957 film), ''Out'' (1957 film), a documentary short about the Hungarian Revolution of 1956 *Out (1982 film), ''Out'' (1982 film), an American film directed by Eli Hollander *O ... or both. Stertor and stridor can occur together, such as when adenotonsillar hypertrophy and laryngomalacia occur together. References Respiration {{Med-sign-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Epiglottitis
Epiglottitis is the inflammation of the epiglottis—the flap at the base of the tongue that prevents food entering the trachea (windpipe). Symptoms are usually rapid in onset and include trouble swallowing which can result in drooling, changes to the voice, fever, and an increased breathing rate. As the epiglottis is in the upper airway, swelling can interfere with breathing. People may lean forward in an effort to open the airway. As the condition worsens, stridor and bluish skin may occur. Epiglottitis was historically mostly caused by infection by '' H. influenzae type b'' (commonly referred to as "Hib"). Following the introduction of the Hib vaccine, pediatric cases of epiglottitis fell from 3.47 cases per 100,000 children in 1980 to 0.63 cases in 1990 such that it is now more often caused by other bacteria, most commonly '' Streptococcus pneumoniae'', ''Streptococcus pyogenes'', or ''Staphylococcus aureus''. Predisposing factors include burns and trauma to the area. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Respiratory Sounds
Respiratory sounds, also known as lung sounds or breath sounds, are the specific sounds generated by the movement of air through the respiratory system. These may be easily audible or identified through auscultation of the respiratory system through the lung fields with a stethoscope as well as from the spectral characteristics of lung sounds. These include normal breath sounds and added sounds such as crackles, wheezes, pleural friction rubs, stertor, and stridor. Description and classification of the sounds usually involve auscultation of the inspiratory and expiratory phases of the breath cycle, noting both the pitch (typically described as low (≤200 Hz), medium or high (≥400 Hz)) and intensity (soft, medium, loud or very loud) of the sounds heard. Normal breath sounds Normal breath sounds are classified as vesicular, bronchovesicular, bronchial or tracheal based on the anatomical location of auscultation. Normal breath sounds can also be identified by patt ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Laryngospasm
Laryngospasm is an uncontrolled or involuntary muscular contraction ( spasm) of the vocal folds. It may be triggered when the vocal cords or the area of the trachea below the vocal folds detects the entry of water, mucus, blood, or other substance. It may be associated with stridor or retractions. Signs and symptoms Laryngospasm is characterized by involuntary spasms of the laryngeal muscles. It is associated with difficulty or inability to breathe or speak, retractions, a feeling of suffocation, which may be followed by hypoxia-induced loss of consciousness. It may be followed by paroxysmal coughing and in partial laryngospasms, a stridor may be heard. It requires prompt identification to avoid possibly fatal complications. It may present with loss of end-tidal carbon dioxide (for mechanically ventilated patients), chest or neck retractions and paradoxical chest wall movements. The condition typically lasts less than 60 seconds, but in cases of partial blocking it may la ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vascular Rings
A vascular ring is a congenital defect in which there is an abnormal formation of the aorta and/or its surrounding blood vessels. The trachea and esophagus are completely encircled and sometimes compressed by a "ring" formed by these vessels, which can lead to breathing and digestive difficulties. Most often this is because of persistence of the double aortic arch after the second month of fetal life. Presentation The two arches surround the esophagus and trachea which, if sufficiently constrictive, may cause breathing or swallowing difficulties despite medical therapies. A less common ring is present with a right aortic arch instead of the usual left-sided aortic arch. This compresses the esophagus and trachea because of the persistence of a ductal ligament (from fetal circulation) that may connect between the aorta on the front and the left subclavian artery posteriorly going to the left arm. Symptoms Diagnosis Infants with vascular rings typically present before 12 months wi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tracheomalacia
Tracheomalacia is a condition or incident where the cartilage that keeps the vertebrate trachea, airway (trachea) open is soft such that the trachea partly collapses especially during increased airflow. This condition is most commonly seen in infants and young children. The usual symptom is stridor when a person exhalation, breathes out. This is usually known as a collapsed windpipe. The trachea normally opens slightly during Inhalation, breathing in and narrows slightly during breathing out. These processes are exaggerated in tracheomalacia, leading to airway collapse on breathing out. If the condition extends further to the bronchi, large airways (bronchi) (if there is also bronchomalacia), it is termed tracheobronchomalacia. The same condition can also affect the larynx, which is called laryngomalacia. The term is from ''trachea'' and the Ancient Greek language, Greek μαλακία, ''softening'' Signs and symptoms Tracheomalacia occurs when the walls of the trachea collaps ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pulmonary Aspiration
Pulmonary aspiration is the entry of solid or liquid material such as pharyngeal secretions, food, drink, or stomach contents from the oropharynx or gastrointestinal tract, into the trachea and lungs. When pulmonary aspiration occurs during eating and drinking, the aspirated material is often colloquially referred to as "going down the wrong pipe". Consequences of pulmonary aspiration include no injury at all, chemical pneumonitis, pneumonia, or even death from asphyxiation. These consequences depend on the volume, chemical composition, particle size, and presence of infectious agents in the aspirated material, and on the underlying health status of the person. In healthy people, aspiration of small quantities of material is common and rarely results in disease or injury. People with significant underlying disease or injury are at greater risk for developing respiratory complications following pulmonary aspiration, especially hospitalized patients, because of certain factors ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Retropharyngeal Abscess
Retropharyngeal abscess (RPA) is an abscess located in the tissues in the back of the throat behind the posterior pharyngeal wall (the retropharyngeal space). Because RPAs typically occur in deep tissue, they are difficult to diagnose by physical examination alone. RPA is a relatively uncommon illness, and therefore may not receive early diagnosis in children presenting with stiff neck, malaise, difficulty swallowing, or other symptoms listed below. Early diagnosis is key, while a delay in diagnosis and treatment may lead to death. Parapharyngeal space communicates with retropharyngeal space and an infection of retropharyngeal space can pass down behind the esophagus into the mediastinum. RPAs can also occur in adults of any age. RPA can lead to airway obstruction or sepsis – both life-threatening emergencies. Fatalities normally occur from patients not receiving treatment immediately and suffocating prior to knowing that anything serious was wrong. Signs and symptoms Signs an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vocal Cord
In humans, the vocal cords, also known as vocal folds, are folds of throat tissues that are key in creating sounds through vocalization. The length of the vocal cords affects the pitch of voice, similar to a violin string. Open when breathing and vibrating for speech or singing, the folds are controlled via the recurrent laryngeal branch of the vagus nerve. They are composed of twin infoldings of mucous membrane stretched horizontally, from back to front, across the larynx. They vibrate, modulating the flow of air being expelled from the lungs during phonation. The 'true vocal cords' are distinguished from the 'false vocal folds', known as vestibular folds or ''ventricular folds'', which sit slightly superior to the more delicate true folds. These have a minimal role in normal phonation, but can produce deep sonorous tones, screams and growls. The length of the vocal fold at birth is approximately six to eight millimeters and grows to its adult length of eight to sixteen mill ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Riedel's Thyroiditis
Riedel's thyroiditis (also known as invasive fibrous thyroiditis), is a chronic form of thyroiditis. It is now believed that Riedel's thyroiditis is one manifestation of a systemic disease that can affect many organ systems called IgG4-related disease. It is often a multi-organ disease affecting pancreas, liver, kidney, salivary and orbital tissues and retroperitoneal space. The hallmarks of the disease are fibrosis and infiltration by IgG4 secreting plasma cells. Signs and symptoms IgG4-related autoimmune diseases are characterized by excessive fibrosis. In case of Riedel's thyroiditis, fibrosis extends beyond the capsule and involves contiguous neck structures, clinically simulating thyroid carcinoma. There is a rapid thyroid enlargement. Compression of trachea, dysphagia are probable outcomes. Marked thyroid follicular cell atrophy confirms hypothyroidism. Signs of hypothyroidism include myxedema, lethargy, cold-intolerance, apathy, slowed intellectual functions, dysthymia or s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tracheal Intubation
Tracheal intubation, usually simply referred to as intubation, is the placement of a flexible plastic catheter, tube into the vertebrate trachea, trachea (windpipe) to maintain an open airway or to serve as a conduit through which to administer certain drugs. It is frequently performed in critically injured, ill, or anesthetized patients to facilitate Ventilation (physiology), ventilation of the lungs, including mechanical ventilation, and to prevent the possibility of asphyxiation or airway obstruction. The most widely used route is orotracheal, in which an tracheal tube, endotracheal tube is passed through the mouth and larynx, vocal apparatus into the trachea. In a nasotracheal procedure, an endotracheal tube is passed through the nose and vocal apparatus into the trachea. Other methods of intubation involve surgery and include the cricothyrotomy (used almost exclusively in emergency circumstances) and the tracheotomy, used primarily in situations where a prolonged need for air ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
