Oxygen Toxicity & Contraindications Flashcards
7 cards from real CHT practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Oxygen Toxicity & Contraindications flashcards as text
HBO-induced seizures due to CNS oxygen toxicity are best characterized as:
Answer: Self-limiting events that resolve when oxygen exposure is reduced
HBO-induced oxygen toxicity seizures are typically self-limiting and cease when the oxygen partial pressure is reduced; they rarely cause permanent neurological injury.
Which intervention is most effective in reducing the cumulative risk of pulmonary oxygen toxicity during a standard HBO treatment course?
Answer: Implementing scheduled air breaks during each treatment session
Scheduled air breaks directly interrupt continuous oxygen breathing, reducing cumulative oxygen dose (OTU accumulation) and the risk of pulmonary toxicity during each session.
A patient with COPD and known CO2 retention (hypercapnia) presents for HBO therapy. The primary concern regarding oxygen toxicity is that hypercapnia:
Answer: Lowers the seizure threshold, increasing CNS oxygen toxicity risk
Hypercapnia (elevated CO2) is a recognized risk factor that lowers the threshold for CNS oxygen toxicity seizures, making careful patient selection and heightened monitoring essential.
When a patient experiences a seizure inside a monoplace hyperbaric chamber, the correct treatment sequence is:
Answer: Switch to air breathing and perform emergency decompression at the maximum safe rate
The correct response is to switch the patient to air and decompress the chamber at the maximum safe rate to remove the causative oxygen stimulus.
Long-term HBO patients receiving daily treatment courses should be monitored for pulmonary oxygen toxicity primarily using:
Answer: Periodic spirometry to detect decreases in vital capacity
Periodic spirometry tracking vital capacity is the recommended standard for detecting early pulmonary oxygen toxicity in patients undergoing extended HBO treatment courses.
Which HBO treatment scenario carries the HIGHEST cumulative pulmonary oxygen toxicity risk?
Answer: 120 minutes at 2.4 ATA breathing 100% O2 with no air breaks
The longest uninterrupted duration at the highest pressure produces the greatest cumulative oxygen dose (OTU accumulation), resulting in the highest pulmonary toxicity risk.
Which of the following is recognized as a RELATIVE contraindication (not absolute) to HBO therapy?
Answer: History of prior spontaneous pneumothorax (now resolved)
A history of spontaneous pneumothorax is a relative contraindication; the risk of recurrence during HBO must be assessed and prophylactic measures considered, but treatment may still proceed.