Vomit inhalation

Respiratory inhalation of various substances can cause different degrees of damage, and its clinical manifestations range from mild upper airway irritation to severe noncardiogenic pulmonary edema and even cause death. In addition to causing lung lesions, some inhalants can cause dysfunction of other organs and cause systemic diseases. According to the different inhaled substances, respiratory inhalation injuries can be roughly divided into four categories: ① chemical pneumonia: gastric acid, oils, lipids, hydrocarbons, meconium, poison gas, smoke; bacterial infection: oropharyngeal Substances, vomitus, purulent secretions from the contralateral lung; ③ inert substances: solid particles, liquids; ④ burns of the respiratory tract: high temperature gases. Inhalation of vomitus into the respiratory tract under pathological conditions can be life-threatening or cause chronic respiratory insufficiency. It often occurs in patients with unconsciousness and abnormal swallowing reflexes, such as excessive use of central inhibitory drugs, excessive alcohol, stroke or traumatic brain injury. Short-term inhalation of a large amount of gastric fluid can cause acute respiratory distress within 1 hour (Mendelson syndrome); but the most common is inhalation of a small amount of vomitus, which causes more insidious lesions, mainly manifested by fever, wet snoring and lungs Purulent sputum; inhalation of more neutral fluid or particulate matter can cause mechanical obstruction of the lower airway. The critical patient has a poor prognosis after aspiration.

The material in this site is intended to be of general informational use and is not intended to constitute medical advice, probable diagnosis, or recommended treatments.