
What causes ineffective airway clearance in nursing?
Nursing Assessment for Ineffective Airway Clearance. Coughing is a mechanism for clearing secretions. An ineffective cough compromises airway clearance and prevents mucus from being expelled. Respiratory muscle fatigue, severe bronchospasm, or thick and tenacious secretions are possible causes of ineffective cough.
What is ineffective airway clearance (IAC)?
The nursing diagnosis of Ineffective Airway Clearance is defined as the inability to clear secretions or obstructions from the respiratory tract to maintain a clear airway.
What causes ineffective airway clearance in COPD?
Ineffective Airway Clearance. Cause Analysis: In COPD, smoke or other environmental pollutants irritate the airways, resulting in hypersecretion of mucus and inflammation. This constant irritation causes the mucus-secreting glands and goblet cells to increase in number, ciliary function is reduced, and more mucus is produced.
What are the signs and symptoms of ineffective airway clearance?
Ineffective Airway Clearance is characterized by the following signs and symptoms: Abnormal breath sounds (crackles, rhonchi, wheezes) Abnormal respiratory rate, rhythm, and depth. Dyspnea. Excessive secretions. Hypoxemia/cyanosis. Inability to remove airway secretions.
What are the common goals and expected outcomes for Ineffective Airway Clearance?
What is the first priority for a patent airway?
Why does my sputum smell?
Why is coughing ineffective?
Why is continuous assessment necessary?
What does it mean when you hear a mucous plug?
How to remove secretions from a patient?
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What are the related factors for ineffective breathing pattern?
The related factors of Ineffective Breathing Pattern were the related factors fatigue, age and group of diseases. Conclusion: fatigue, age and patients with a group of diseases were related factors of Ineffective Breathing Pattern in this study.
What is the nursing diagnosis of ineffective airway clearance?
Ineffective Airway Clearance is a common NANDA-I nursing diagnosis for pneumonia nursing care plans. This diagnosis is related to excessive secretions and ineffective cough or nonproductive coughing. Inflammation and increased secretions in pneumonia make it difficult to maintain a patent airway.
Can asthma cause ineffective airway clearance?
Ineffective cough and adventitious respiratory sounds were the indicators with best specificity. Conclusion: the clinical indicator adventitious respiratory sounds was the best predictor of Ineffective airway clearance in asthmatic children treated in emergency units.
How do you maintain airway clearance?
The techniques that you can usually do yourself include:Deep coughing. This is a deep, controlled cough. ... Huff coughing. ... Self drainage or autogenic drainage (AD). ... Active cycle of breathing therapy (ACBT). ... Physical exercise.
What nursing interventions can be implemented to improve airway clearance?
Nursing Care Plan for Ineffective Airway Clearance 5Nursing Interventions for Ineffective Airway ClearanceRationalesEncourage coughing up of phlegm. Suction secretions as needed. Perform steam inhalation or nebulization as required/ prescribed.To help clear thick phlegm that the patient is unable to expectorate.4 more rows
What is Nanda approved nursing diagnosis?
A nursing diagnosis is defined by NANDA International (2013) as a clinical judgment concerning a human response to health conditions/life processes, or vulnerability for that response, by an individual, family, group, or community.
How do you write a nursing diagnosis?
A nursing diagnosis has typically three components: (1) the problem and its definition, (2) the etiology, and (3) the defining characteristics or risk factors (for risk diagnosis). BUILDING BLOCKS OF A DIAGNOSTIC STATEMENT. Components of an NDx may include problem, etiology, risk factors, and defining characteristics.
What is an appropriate outcome statement for a patient with a patient problem of ineffective airway clearance related to thick secretions?
Nursing process and critical thinkingQuestionAnswerWhat is an appropriate outcome statement for a patient with a nursing diagnosis of ineffective airway clearance related to thick secretions?The patient will increase intake to 1000 mL daily to liquefy secretions.51 more rows
Ineffective Airway Clearance Nursing Diagnosis & Care Plan
Many disease processes and acute situations can affect the airway. Ineffective airway clearance is the inability to maintain a patent airway. Usually, protective mechanisms such as microscopic organisms or coughing keep the respiratory tract free of obstructions and secretions.
Ineffective Airway Clearance Nursing Diagnosis and Nursing Care Plan
Ineffective Airway Clearance Nursing Care Plans Diagnosis and Interventions. Ineffective Airway Clearance NCLEX Review and Nursing Care Plans. Ineffective airway clearance occurs when the body loses the ability to maintain a patent airway.
Nursing Care Plan for: Ineffective Breathing Pattern, Dyspnea ...
Ineffective breathing pattern care plan: This nursing care plan and diagnosis is for the following condition: Ineffective Breathing Pattern, Dyspnea, Respiratory Distress Syndrome, Hyoxia, Acute Respiratory Failure, Hypoxemia, and Respiratory Illness. What are nursing care plans? How do you develop a nursing care plan? What nursing care plan book do you recommend helping you develop a nursing ...
Nursing Interventions and Rationales: Ineffective Airway clearance
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Expected Outcomes
Patient will maintain a patent airway as evidenced by clear breath sounds, oxygen saturation within normal limits, and the ability to cough to clear secretions
Nursing Assessment for Ineffective Airway Clearance
1.
Nursing Interventions for Ineffective Airway Clearance
1. Position to decrease secretions. Maintain an elevated head of bed as tolerated to help prevent secretions from accumulating. Sliding down in the bed or a slumped posture prevents proper lung expansion.
References and Sources
Doenges, M. E., Moorhouse, M. F., & Murr, A. C. (2008). Nurse’s Pocket Guide Diagnoses, Prioritized Interventions, and Rationales (11th ed.). F. A. Davis Company.
Why is airway clearance ineffective?
Ineffective airway clearance occurs when an artificial airway is used because normal mucociliary transport mechanisms are bypassed and impaired. Nursing assessment and intervention are the keys to maintaining airway patency in the patient with an artificial airway in place. The assessment of breath sounds is critical to making a valid clinical ...
What are some interventions that can help to maintain airway patency?
Nursing interventions such as tracheobronchial suctioning, postural drainage, and providing exogenous humidity to the inspired air are indicated to maintain airway patency, which is the goal of treatment.
What is ineffective airway clearance?
Ineffective airway clearance is the inability to maintain a patent airway. Usually, protective mechanisms such as microscopic organisms or coughing keep the respiratory tract free of obstructions and secretions. However, if any of these mechanisms are impaired, there is a risk for a compromised airway.
Why is my temperature elevated?
An elevated temperature can occur as a response to an infectious or inflammatory process. Obtain blood gases at least once per shift. Remember the normal arterial blood gas values.
How to help dyspneic patients?
Information about the disease and its possible outcomes might improve compliance with the treatment plan. Teach about coughing and deep breathing techniques. These breathing exercises increase oxygenation , help reduce secretions, and help reduce dyspneic episodes.
How to help bronchospasms?
Avoiding allergens or other irritants may reduce bronchospasms and other respiratory problems. Teach family and caregivers how to suction the patient if needed. Being familiar with suctioning techniques promotes patient safety. Recommend the family and caregiver to attend a basic life support course.
How often should you perform a respiratory assessment?
Perform a comprehensive respiratory assessment at least every four hours. Assess rate, rhythm, and depth of respiration. An initial respiratory assessment builds a baseline for further examinations. It allows for trending the improvements or worsening of the patient’s condition. Note the patient’s oxygen saturation.
Can COPD cause high calories?
Long-term respiratory conditions such as COPD or cystic fibrosis can require a constant increased work of breathing. This leads to a high need for calories. However, patients may be too exhausted and fatigued to eat and, therefore, cannot maintain an adequate calorie intake. Assess the patient’s hydration status.
Is thin secretion easier to expectorate?
Thin secretion may be easier to expectorate. Anticipate frequent orders of chest x-rays and/ or CT scans. Imaging results provide a more detailed picture of the disease process and allow for a more targeted treatment. Frequent images also provide a baseline and allow for comparison during the treatment process.
What causes ineffective airway clearance?
Although the offending agent is a major factor, the degree of severity of ineffective airway clearance depends on many other factors: pulmonary host defenses, presence of underlying pulmonary disease, age, lifestyle habits, environments, airway clearance self-management skills, and time of specific treatment.
What is the problem with airway clearance?
Clearance of secretions is a common problem in patients who experience acute respiratory tract infections. Although the offending agent is a major factor, the degree of severity of ineffective airway clearance depends on many other factors: pulmonary host defenses, presence of underlying pulmonary d …
What are the common goals and expected outcomes for Ineffective Airway Clearance?
The following are the common goals and expected outcomes for Ineffective Airway Clearance. Patient will maintain clear, open airways as evidence by normal breath sounds, normal rate and depth of respirations, and ability to effectively cough up secretions after treatments and deep breaths.
What is the first priority for a patent airway?
Maintaining patent airway is always the first priority, especially in cases like trauma, acute neurological decompensation, or cardiac arrest. Auscultate lungs for presence of normal or adventitious breath sounds, as in the following: Abnormal breath sounds can be heard as fluid and mucus accumulate.
Why does my sputum smell?
Unusual appearance of secretions may be a result of infection, bronchitis, chronic smoking, or other condition. A discolored sputum is a sign of infection; an odor may be present. Dehydration may be present if patient has labored breathing with thick, tenacious secretions that increase airway resistance.
Why is coughing ineffective?
Coughing is a mechanism for clearing secretions. An ineffective cough compromises airway clearance and prevents mucus from being expelled. Respiratory muscle fatigue, severe bronchospasm, or thick and tenacious secretions are possible causes of ineffective cough.
Why is continuous assessment necessary?
Continuous assessment is necessary in order to know possible problems that may have lead to Ineffective Airway Clearance as well as name any concerns that may occur during nursing care.
What does it mean when you hear a mucous plug?
Abnormal breath sounds can be heard as fluid and mucus accumulate. This may indicate ineffective airway clearance. Decreased or absent breath sounds. These may indicate presence of a mucous plug or other major obstruction. Wheezing. This may indicate partial airway obstruction or resistance.
How to remove secretions from a patient?
The most convenient way to remove most secretions is coughing. So it is necessary to assist the patient during this activity. Deep breathing, on the other hand, promotes oxygenation before controlled coughing.

Goals and Outcomes
- The following are the common goals and expected outcomes for Ineffective Airway Clearance. 1. Patient will maintain clear, open airways as evidence by normal breath sounds, normal rate and depth of respirations, and ability to effectively cough up secretions after treatments and deep br…
Nursing Assessment For Ineffective Airway Clearance
- Continuous assessmentis necessary in order to know possible problems that may have lead to Ineffective Airway Clearance as well as name any concerns that may occur during nursing care.
Recommended Resources
- Recommended nursing diagnosis and nursing care plan books and resources. Disclosure: Included below are affiliate links from Amazon at no additional cost from you. We may earn a small commission from your purchase. For more information, check out our privacy policy. 1. Nursing Care Plans: Nursing Diagnosis and Intervention (10th Edition) An awesome book to hel…
See Also
- Other recommended site resources for this nursing care plan: 1. Nursing Care Plans (NCP): Ultimate Guide and Database Over 150+ nursing care plans for different diseases and conditions. Includes our easy-to-follow guide on how to create nursing care plans from scratch. 2. Nursing Diagnosis Guide and List: All You Need to Know to Master Diagnosing Our comprehensive guid…
References and Sources
- Here are some recommended materials and sources for Ineffective Airway Clearance: 1. Hill, A. T., Barker, A. F., Bolser, D. C., Davenport, P., Ireland, B., Chang, A. B., … & McGarvey, L. (2018). Treating cough due to non-CF and CF bronchiectasis with nonpharmacological airway clearance: CHEST expert panel report. Chest, 153(4), 986-993. 2. Shekleton, M. E., & Nield, M. (1987). Ineffective air…