What is PA Arrest?

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I'm a student RN and I found "patient was intubated to protect his airway and also had a PA arrest" in the h&p of my patient's chart. I was doing my rotation in the cardiac care unit. Can someone please tell me what PA stands for? Thanks!

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Specializes in Sleep medicine,Floor nursing, OR, Trauma.

Good evening--

I only know PA arrest as meaning "Prolonged Apnea" arrest, aka: Respiratory Arrest, aka: Code Blue. There is a pulmonologist I work with frequently that favors this term and abbreviation for some reason.

Perhaps it means something else from other areas/parts of the world. But, just a thought and from the context, it sounds about right.

Regards,

~~CP~~

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Maybe a typo for PEA arrest i.e. pulseless electrical activity... electrical conduction of the heart without mechanical capture/pulse. The only other medical abbreviation I can think of for PA would be pulmonary artery but that wouldn't fit with arrest. Other abbreviations... maybe post-admission arrest... PEA makes the most sense though.

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Specializes in Long-term Acute Care.

Take a deep breath. Relax. Don't panic. Intubation is indicated for airway protection. It is done regularly and is a prophylactic measure in many cases such as CVA's, severe pneumonia, pulmonary edema, anaphylaxis, diabetic coma, status epilepticus, status asthmaticus. It is a scary thing to see if you don't know why it is being done.

Was the PA arrest before or after the intubation? If it was before, it could be the prolonged apnea arrest. If after, probably not since the pt was on the ventilator.

Ann Najjar, Registered Nurse, Regisered Respiratory Therapist

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Specializes in Critical Care, ED, Cath lab, CTPAC,Trauma.

I would hope if the patient suffered an arrest they would be intubated for airway protection. This is exactly the reason the Joint Commission has an approved abbreviation list. I would call the facility and ask to be connected to the unit you were and ask one of the nurses.

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Thank you for your response. If you read my post, I was not asking why my pt was intubated. The purpose of including that information was so that you can see the context in which PA arrest was used. As clearly stated, I was wondering if anyone could explain to me what "PA" in "PA arrest" means. Thank you again for your contribution.

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Specializes in Critical Care, ED, Cath lab, CTPAC,Trauma.
Thank you for your response. If you read my post, I was not asking why my pt was intubated. The purpose of including that information was so that you can see the context in which PA arrest was used. As clearly stated, I was wondering if anyone could explain to me what "PA" in "PA arrest" means. Thank you again for your contribution.

It was tongue in cheek....PA arrest.....that is not an approved abbreviation......call the facility where you got the information..the nurses will tell you. It could mean many things.

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I am not sure about you- but i have seen some messed up stuff in H&P dictations (i once saw "ventricular assist device" dictated into an h&p as "ventricular cyst of eyes"). I would assume that PA could be just pulseless arrest, but the dictating doctor misspoke. It happens all the time.

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