Prehospital Trauma Life Support (PHTLS) Practice Test

The condition that can arise from a chest injury leading to ineffective ventilation is respiratory failure. When there is trauma to the chest, it can compromise the mechanics of breathing, thereby preventing adequate gas exchange. Factors such as rib fractures, flail chest, or lung collapse can disrupt this function, resulting in insufficient oxygenation of the blood and inadequate removal of carbon dioxide. This scenario can manifest as respiratory failure, where the body's needs for oxygen and carbon dioxide elimination are not met due to the impaired respiratory mechanics.

While pneumothorax and hemothorax are serious conditions that can also affect ventilation, they specifically describe the presence of air or blood in the pleural space, respectively. These conditions can contribute to respiratory failure but do so through different mechanisms, such as lung collapse or reduced lung volume. Cardiac arrest occurs as a separate pathophysiological process, often as a consequence of severe trauma or lack of oxygen but does not directly result from the chest injury itself in the context of ineffective ventilation.