Anaesthesia & Critical Care

20 learning units • 100 chapter sections • 200 explained questions. Prepare patients for anaesthesia, recognise perioperative emergencies and understand organ support, critical-care teamwork and recovery.

Original RAHBAR study material for the Year 5 learning pathway. Clinical cases support supervised undergraduate learning. Treatment choices, doses and procedures must follow current local protocols and the responsible clinical team. References & further reading ↓

MODULE 14 / 20

Mechanical Ventilation & ARDS

Understand protective ventilation, bedside reassessment and liberation from support.

Choose an answer and check it immediately. Change your choice to try again. This is a self-study exercise; results are not saved.

Question 01. What is the purpose of mechanical ventilation? A. Cure every underlying lung diseaseB. Replace all circulationC. Support gas exchange while the cause is treatedD. Eliminate the need for monitoring

Question 02. Which weight informs lung-protective tidal-volume planning? A. Actual weight alone in every patientB. Predicted body weightC. The heaviest recorded weightD. Body weight is never relevant

Question 03. Why limit excessive tidal volume and pressure? A. They always prevent infectionB. They eliminate sedation needsC. They can contribute to ventilator-induced lung injuryD. They guarantee immediate extubation

Question 04. What does PEEP help maintain? A. Complete absence of chest movementB. Zero intrathoracic pressureC. End-expiratory airway pressure and alveolar recruitmentD. Permanent spontaneous breathing

Question 05. Which pattern supports consideration of ARDS? A. Acute hypoxaemia with bilateral lung abnormalities in contextB. An isolated chronic ankle deformityC. Normal lungs with no hypoxaemiaD. Every mild sore throat

Question 06. What should be assessed during sudden ventilator-associated desaturation? A. Only the screen brightnessB. Only the chart headerC. Patient, airway, circuit and chestD. Only the previous discharge plan

Question 07. Is silencing a ventilator alarm a complete response? A. YesB. Only at nightC. Only if the alarm is loudD. No

Question 08. What can excessive sedation delay? A. Every laboratory resultB. Assessment for liberation from ventilationC. Bone healing immediatelyD. Blood grouping

Question 09. What else matters after a successful spontaneous breathing assessment? A. Hair colourB. Airway protection, cough and secretionsC. The date aloneD. The number of previous visitors

Question 10. Why plan rehabilitation during ventilatory support? A. Critical illness and immobility impair recoveryB. Exercise replaces oxygen in all patientsC. Mobility guarantees no infectionD. Rehabilitation begins only years later

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References & Further Reading

Read the relevant guideline sections alongside these original clinical teaching cases. Local pathways, available services and individual patient factors determine care.

Reference review: 29 September 2026. Consult current local protocols for prescribing, procedures and escalation.