Alberta Health Services Mid Term Assessment Practice Test

ARDS stands for Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome. This name reflects a rapid-onset, severe inflammation in the lungs that leads to diffuse alveolar damage and significant oxygenation problems, i.e., noncardiogenic pulmonary edema causing acute respiratory failure. The term is about the lungs and the distress of breathing, not the kidneys or the airway, and it’s described as a syndrome because it’s a pattern of signs and symptoms rather than a single disease. The other phrasings would imply issues with organs other than the lungs or use an incorrect term, which don’t fit the condition ARDS describes.