Adult respiratory distress syndrome: a deadly complication of trauma.

The patient with ARDS presents a particular challenge to critical care nurses and other members of the health care team. The key to effective nursing management of the patient with ARDS is astute observation of the high-risk patient, particularly the trauma patient who has had chest trauma or cardiac or pulmonary contusion. Continual monitoring of arterial blood gas values and chest x-ray examinations aid in the early recognition of the clinical manifestations of ARDS. Although the trauma patient in whom ARDS develops faces a long and frequently difficult recovery, with astute, aggressive nursing intervention, patients with ARDS today face a much lower mortality rate than they did even 10 years ago. The overview of primary nursing diagnoses, goals, and interventions presented applies to most patients with ARDS. Individualized care plans can be formulated as an extension of the basic plan, thus ensuring optimum nursing care to the patient with ARDS.