A 22-year-old with asthma comes to the emergency department in respiratory distress

The patient has acute shortness of breath (SOB); is febrile, tachypneic, and tachycardic; and has an SpO2 of 88% on a nasal cannula that delivers 2 L/min. Which of the following actions should the respiratory therapist take at this time?
a. Teach the patient to breathe through pursed lips.
b. Place a simple mask on the patient.
c. Remove the cannula and place a 0.35 air-entrainment mask on the patient.
d. Place a high-flow cannula at 15 L/min on the patient.

ANS: C
A patient with asthma benefits from a precise preset FIO2. With a simple mask, there is a greater likelihood of the patient retaining CO2, which is not helpful for those with asthma. Breathing through pursed lips is beneficial to people with asthma; however, it is not the first course of ac-tion. Finally, a high-flow cannula at 15 L/min is too much FIO2 for the patient at this time.