Early Detection of Respiratory Depression - Respiratory depression (RD) is a feared complication in patients undergoing intravenous or epidural patient-controlled analgesia for the treatment of postoperative pain. Adequate monitoring provides a unique opportunity to clinicians to detect early signs of respiratory depression and significantly reduce the incidence of sentinel events.
Define sedation and opioid-induced respiratory depression (RD).
Discuss the current status of monitoring for RD.
Discuss the impact of procedural sedation and analgesia in the incidence of respiratory depression.
Describe the role of pulse oximetry, capnography, and pulmonary indices in detecting alveolar hypoventilation.1.0 Free CEUs for Respiratory Therapists
