A 20-year-old female has called 911 for chest pain. On scene you find that she has shallow breathing with an SpO₂ reading of 91% on room air. She states she was in a car crash yesterday and diagnosed in the hospital with broken ribs. She says that her pain is right where the ribs are broken and rates it a 10/10. Breath sounds are present bilaterally. In this situation, the EMT should attribute the hypoxia to which one of the following?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The shallow breathing and low SpO₂ reading can be attributed to the severe pain from the broken ribs, which may be preventing the patient from taking deep breaths and fully expanding the chest cage. There is no indication of a collapsed lung, compressive swelling, or bleeding into the lungs in this scenario.

A 20-Year-Old Female Has Called 911 for Chest Pain