Practice Quiz

NREMT Paramedic Trauma Exam Prep

Category - Paramedic Trauma

Start a Study Session Sign up for Question of the Day
You are called to the scene of a stabbing where you find a mid-20s male lying on the ground. He is responsive to verbal commands. Bystanders state that he was talking prior to EMS arrival.

On exam, you locate a stab wound to the patient’s chest, mid axillary, in the sixth intercostal space. The patient is profoundly tachypneic, tachycardic, pale, and hypoxemic at 85%. Lung sounds are absent on the right side.

What is the most appropriate treatment?
  1. Insert a long, large bore angiocatheter into the second intercostal space on the right, midclavicular
  2. BVM ventilations, cover the wound with Vaseline gauze, and transport
  3. Insert a long, large bore angiocatheter into the second intercostal space on the left, midclavicular
  4. Oxygenation via NRB, rapid transport to a trauma center
Explanation
Answer: A- This patient is exhibiting signs of a worsening tension pneumothorax and requires immediate needle decompression.

This procedure allows for air trapped in the pleural space to escape, freeing up pressure on the heart and great vessels. Ventilatory management and oxygenation are good next steps as needed, but freeing the obstructive shock as soon as possible is critical.
Previous Next
Was this helpful? Upvote!
Login to contribute your own answer or details
Start a Study Session Sign up for Question of the Day

Top questions

Related questions

Most popular on PracticeQuiz