When a patient is diagnosed with acute pulmonary edema, he must be given immediate medical aid. Some of the symptoms associated with acute pulmonary edema include shortness of breath with severe respiratory difficulty. The patient will appear to be suffocated and air hungry. Breathing will be labored and strenuous and cracking sounds will be coming from the lungs.
Orthopnea is a condition that is typically associated with an individual suffering from acute pulmonary edema. In this condition the patient will be unable to remain in lying position and he will be able to breathe only when he is in sitting position. This may be accompanied by nasal flaring and bloody and frothy sputum is also seen.
A chest radiograph of an individual suffering from acute pulmonary edema will show the accumulation of fluids in the lung. This condition is a medical emergency and the patients need to be transferred to intensive care where all facilities including face mask and tracheal incubation are easily available.
According to the specialists acute pulmonary edema is associated with myocardial infarction and cardiac muscle dysfunction. There may be disorders in the valves which include aortic or pulmonary valve. In case of fluid overload in infants, it may lead to acute form of pulmonary edema.