Continuing Professional Development: Understanding paramedic treatment and management of pulmonary embolism

The airway is divided into two broad sections, namely the upper and lower airway. In the case of airway management it is vital that the paramedic has a good working knowledge of the anatomy and physiology of the upper airway. Normal natural breathing occurs through the nose, this is for a number of reasons. One of the most important reasons is the role of structures within the nasal passage and nasopharynx. Within the nasal passage, structures called turbinates moisten and humidify the air that is breathed before it travels into the lower airway, this ensures that inspired air is warmed when it reaches the lower airway (Tortora and Derrickson, 2014). Without this mechanism inspired air would be cold and have a profound effect on core body temperature. In order to humidify inspired air during normal breathing the turbinates will use 1 litre of fluid a day (Hagberg, 2007), therefore patients in respiratory failure, such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), will use a great deal more fluid, but unfortunately due to the difficulty they have to drink while breathless they tend to be chronically dehydrated.