Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome: An Autopsy Study

Abstract

ABSTRACT Aim To find out prevalence and the associated predisposing etiologic conditions of acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) amongst autopsied cases. Setting and design The present study was a retrospective analysis of 125 cases of ARDS obtained at autopsy over a span of 4 years from 2000-2003. Materials and methods Data was retrieved from the postmortem record of the pathology department and the medical record department. A review of histology slides was done with diffuse alveolar damage (DAD) as the correlate of ARDS at histopathology. Results Prevalence of ARDS amongst autopsied cases was 3.15%. There were 60% cases in adult age group and of male gender; whereas 40% were children and of female gender. Almost 90% of cases succumbed to ARDS within a week of admission. The most common presenting features were of the respiratory system. The most common predisposing etiologic association was leptospirosis, septicemia and pneumonia. Conclusion Systemic infections were the most common predisposing etiologic conditions of ARDS at autopsy. How to cite this article Sachdev S, Pandit SP. Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome: An Autopsy Study. J Postgrad Med Edu Res 2014;48(1):8-13.