The Nurse Educator Is Teaching a Group of Nursing Students

The nurse educator is teaching a group of nursing students how to perform a respiratory assessment for a newborn in the newborn intensive care unit (NICU) diagnosed with respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) . Which normal characteristics of the newborn's respiratory system increase the risk for obstruction? Select all that apply.

A) Shorter and narrower airway
B) Higher trachea
C) Bronchial branching at different angles
D) Inadequate smooth muscle bundles
E) Diaphragmatic breather