ARDS

Q: Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS) is a diagnosis of exclusion?

A) True
B) False


Answer: True

This is an essential and an important concept to be abreast of. Establising a diagnosis of ARDS requires many other related conditions to be ruled out such as pleural effusions, atelectasis, lung mass, diffuse alveolar hemorrhage, congestive heart failure, fluid overload, idiopathic acute exacerbation of pre-existing interstitial lung disease, malignancy and others. It also requires certain criteria to be fulfilled as established in Berlin criteria of ARDS.



Reference:

The ARDS Definition Task Force -Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome The Berlin Definition - JAMA. 2012;307(23):2526-2533