NUR2010 W2 - Paediatric
Anatomy And Assessments
Exam Study Set
What are the main differences between children and adults - Answer - types&
mechanisms of injury.
- communication
- emotional responses
- cognition
- maternal antibodies replaced by infants as they grow
- responses to illness differ
- critical illness may occur more quickly in children due to their immature respiratory &
cardiovascular systems - less reserves.
Anatomy - airway - Answer - Large head compared to body
- small face & mandible
- Diameter of upper & lower airway is narrower
- Shorter Trachea (ETT more easily displaced by movement).
- Airways lined with ciliated epithelium - Susceptible to Oedema
- Cricoid is narrowest part of airway until puberty
- Larynx is soft, high & more anterior
- Shorter, fatter neck
- Infants have larger occiput
- Smaller, funnelled, narrow airway
- Higher risk of foreign body obstruction
- Larger tongue but smaller oral cavity
- Enlarged tonsils
, - Infants are nose breathers.
airway resistance - Answer - Airway resistance location differs between children and
adults
- Higher risk of Atelectasis
- Even mild airway oedema can dramatically impact a child's WOB
breathing - Answer - ribs are horizontal
- higher oxygen demand = higher metabolic rates
- thin and more compliant chest wall
- heart rate influenced by respiratory insufficiency.
- irregular breathing patters
- diaphragmatic breathing
- lungs are immature with underdeveloped alveoli
- resp rate
- small amount of elastic and collagen in lungs
- O2 consumption 6ml/kg/min (2x an adult).
Cardiovascular - Answer - HR & BP
- Audible heart sounds (thin chest wall)
- Apical beat
- Cardiac Output dependent on HR NOT SV
- Most common abnormal rhythms are SVT, Bradycardia & Sinus arrhythmia
- Left Ventricular muscle not fully developed until 6 years of age
- Children have very efficient compensatory mechanisms
- ECF 40% body weight (20% in adults).
- produce more urine than adults
- smaller vessels and more subcutaneous fat
- High risk of dehydration
- high risk of fluid overload
Anatomy And Assessments
Exam Study Set
What are the main differences between children and adults - Answer - types&
mechanisms of injury.
- communication
- emotional responses
- cognition
- maternal antibodies replaced by infants as they grow
- responses to illness differ
- critical illness may occur more quickly in children due to their immature respiratory &
cardiovascular systems - less reserves.
Anatomy - airway - Answer - Large head compared to body
- small face & mandible
- Diameter of upper & lower airway is narrower
- Shorter Trachea (ETT more easily displaced by movement).
- Airways lined with ciliated epithelium - Susceptible to Oedema
- Cricoid is narrowest part of airway until puberty
- Larynx is soft, high & more anterior
- Shorter, fatter neck
- Infants have larger occiput
- Smaller, funnelled, narrow airway
- Higher risk of foreign body obstruction
- Larger tongue but smaller oral cavity
- Enlarged tonsils
, - Infants are nose breathers.
airway resistance - Answer - Airway resistance location differs between children and
adults
- Higher risk of Atelectasis
- Even mild airway oedema can dramatically impact a child's WOB
breathing - Answer - ribs are horizontal
- higher oxygen demand = higher metabolic rates
- thin and more compliant chest wall
- heart rate influenced by respiratory insufficiency.
- irregular breathing patters
- diaphragmatic breathing
- lungs are immature with underdeveloped alveoli
- resp rate
- small amount of elastic and collagen in lungs
- O2 consumption 6ml/kg/min (2x an adult).
Cardiovascular - Answer - HR & BP
- Audible heart sounds (thin chest wall)
- Apical beat
- Cardiac Output dependent on HR NOT SV
- Most common abnormal rhythms are SVT, Bradycardia & Sinus arrhythmia
- Left Ventricular muscle not fully developed until 6 years of age
- Children have very efficient compensatory mechanisms
- ECF 40% body weight (20% in adults).
- produce more urine than adults
- smaller vessels and more subcutaneous fat
- High risk of dehydration
- high risk of fluid overload
