Respiratory distress and failure in children — viva

Opening (must-hit)

"I treat respiratory distress and failure as one continuum. I clear the pre-arrest threat gate first, give oxygen, and then read the trend in the child's effort — rising effort means they are compensating, falling effort with a quieter chest and a drowsier child means they are failing. I localise the cause to the upper airway, lower airway, lung tissue, or the pump and drive, and I escalate support in steps while treating the cause." [1] [6] [8]