Breathing - slowed or stopped

Injury	Disease	Nutrition	Poison

Symptoms	Surgery	Test	Special Topic

Overview

Treatment

Breathing - slowed or stopped

Alternative Names:

Respiration slowed or stopped; Not breathing; Respiratory arrest; Apnea

Call your health care provider if:

If a person has stopped breathing, call for emergency help and perform CPR (if you know how).

What to expect at your health care provider's office:

CPR or other emergency measures will be done in an emergency room or by an ambulance EMT (emergency medical technician).

Once the patient is stable, the doctor will do a physical exam and ask questions about the person's medical history. Questions may include:

Time pattern
- Has this ever happened before?
- How long did the event last?
- Has the person had repeated, brief episodes of apnea?
- Did the episode end with a sudden deep snorting breath?
- Did the episode occur while awake or asleep?
Recent heath history
- Has there been any recent history of an accident or injury?
- Has the person been ill recently?
- Had there been any breathing difficulty before the breathing stopped?
- What other symptoms are also present?
- What medication does the person take?
- Does the person use street drugs?

The doctor will listen to the person's heart sounds and breath sounds. Diagnostic tests may be performed. They include:

Chest x-ray
ECG
Arterial blood gas

Review Date: 3/21/2006
Reviewed By: Eric Perez, MD, Department of Emergency Medicine, St. Luke's-RooseveltHospital Center, New York, NY. Review provided by VeriMed HealthcareNetwork.

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