Pulmonology · Upper airway emergencies, adult upper airway pathology, GPA manifestations, OSA, central sleep apnea, obesity hypoventilation syndrome
By completing this question set, you will be able to distinguish croup from epiglottitis from foreign body aspiration by age, presentation, and imaging. You will identify the critical management principle in epiglottitis (secure the airway first — do NOT examine oropharynx). You will recognize adult upper airway pathology including peritonsillar abscess, vocal cord lesions, and RLN injury. You will identify GPA upper airway manifestations (saddle nose, subglottic stenosis, c-ANCA). You will diagnose OSA from clinical history and polysomnography (AHI), describe its systemic complications (hypertension, PH, arrhythmias, metabolic syndrome), and apply the treatment hierarchy (CPAP, weight loss). You will distinguish central sleep apnea from OSA by the presence or absence of respiratory effort. You will describe obesity hypoventilation syndrome as chronic hypercapnia in the obese patient with blunted CO₂ response.