ABP Pediatric Pulmonology study guide
ABP Pediatric Pulmonology · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.
This independent study page prepares physicians for the American Board of Pediatrics (ABP) pediatric pulmonology subspecialty certifying examination. The credential is designed for pediatricians who have completed accredited fellowship training in pediatric pulmonology and who seek board certification in the subspecialty. The ABP Pediatric Pulmonology study guide has 8 sections and about 2,289 words.
01Pulmonary Physiology and Lung Development
Lung development follows embryonic, pseudoglandular, canalicular, saccular, and alveolar stages. A useful ordering is that conducting airways form before gas-exchange units.
274 words, about 1 min02Airway Disorders and Asthma
Asthma is chronic airway inflammation with variable expiratory airflow limitation, often atopic. Diagnosis requires compatible symptoms plus documented variability or reversibility; spirometry is preferred when the child is old enough.
307 words, about 2 min03Respiratory Infections
Bronchiolitis is a viral lower respiratory infection, most often respiratory syncytial virus, in children under 2 years. It presents with coryza, tachypnea, wheeze or crackles, and feeding difficulty.
280 words, about 1 min04Cystic Fibrosis and Bronchiectasis
Cystic fibrosis is autosomal recessive, caused by CFTR dysfunction, and affects multiple organs. Sweat chloride of 60 mmol/L or greater is diagnostic on two occasions; 30–59 mmol/L is intermediate; below 30 mmol/L is normal in most patients.
291 words, about 1 min05Neonatal and Congenital Lung Disease
Respiratory distress in the newborn has age- and gestation-specific causes. Respiratory distress syndrome results from surfactant deficiency in preterm infants and causes grunting, retractions, ground-glass lungs, and air bronchograms; antenatal corticosteroids and surfactant improve outcomes.
288 words, about 1 min06Sleep-Disordered Breathing
Pediatric obstructive sleep apnea is most often caused by adenotonsillar hypertrophy, with obesity, craniofacial anomalies, Down syndrome, and neuromuscular disease as additional risk factors. Symptoms include snoring, mouth breathing, witnessed apneas, enuresis, morning headache, daytime sleepiness, and poor school performance.
268 words, about 1 min07Diagnostic Testing and Pulmonary Function
Spirometry measures forced expiratory volume in 1 second, forced vital capacity, the ratio, and forced expiratory flow. It is effort-dependent and usually feasible from about age 5–6.
298 words, about 1 min08Respiratory Failure and Intensive Care
Respiratory failure is classified as type I hypoxemic or type II hypercapnic. Pediatric acute respiratory distress syndrome requires acute onset within 7 days, hypoxemia, positive-pressure ventilation with positive end-expiratory pressure of at least 5, and chest imaging not fully explained by cardiac failure.
283 words, about 1 min