A 21-year-old man was removed from the water after being submerged for approximately 5 minutes. The patient's friend, who was with him at the time of submersion, states that there was no trauma involved. Your assessment reveals that the patient is apneic; however, he has a slow, weak carotid pulse. After preoxygenating the patient, you insert an endotracheal tube. During auscultation of the lungs, you hear coarse crackles in all fields; the epigastrium is quiet. As you ventilate the patient, you note decreased compliance. The MOST effective way to treat this situation is to:

A) attach a portable ventilator that provides positive end-expiratory pressure.
B) insert a nasogastric tube and remove any water from the patient's stomach.
C) increase your ventilation rate to 15 breaths/min and provide higher volume.
D) administer morphine sulfate to promote venous pooling and decreased preload.


Answer: A) attach a portable ventilator that provides positive end-expiratory pressure.

Environmental & Atmospheric Sciences

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