Everyone Healthy Library
Breathing: Respiratory Distress
Sign or symptom reference page from the Everyone Healthy database.
! Seek urgent medical care if warning signs appear
A symptom can have many possible causes. Some symptoms need urgent assessment, especially when they are severe, sudden or rapidly worsening.
Get urgent medical care now if there is any severe, sudden, rapidly worsening or worrying symptom, especially:
- chest pain, pressure or pain spreading to the arm, jaw or back
- trouble breathing, blue lips, severe wheeze or choking
- stroke-like symptoms such as face drooping, arm weakness or speech trouble
- collapse, fainting, seizure, confusion or extreme drowsiness
- severe bleeding, black stools, vomiting blood or major injury
- severe allergic reaction, swelling of the face/throat or widespread rash with breathing trouble
- severe abdominal pain, severe headache, stiff neck or sudden vision change
- signs of severe dehydration, sepsis, high fever with worsening illness, or symptoms in a baby/young child that concern you
Full information
Breathing: Respiratory Distress
Respiratory distress occurs when the body is not receiving enough oxygen from the lungs. The term refers to both the physical difficulty in breathing and the psychological experience associated with such difficulty. Signs of respiratory distress include increased breathing rate, colour change around the mouth or fingers, grunting during exhalation, nose flaring, chest retraction, sweating and/or wheezing.
Conditions linked to this sign/symptom
4Drugs where this is listed as a side effect
0No drug side-effect links are listed yet.