Atelectasis after surgery can be caused by which of the following?

• A. Pulmonary edema
• B. Orthopnea
• C. Retained secretions
• D. JVD

Answer: (C)

Atelectasis after surgery is usually caused by the airway becoming blocked by secretions. After anesthesia and surgery, breathing tends to be shallow and coughing is reduced, so secretions aren’t cleared effectively. Those retained secretions can plug small airways, preventing air from reaching parts of the lung. The air already inside those alveoli gets absorbed, leading to collapse of the affected areas. That’s why retained secretions are the main culprit.

Pulmonary edema, orthopnea, and JVD are related to fluid overload and heart function, not the airway blockage that leads to alveolar collapse, so they don’t explain postoperative atelectasis. Encouraging deep breathing and coughing, along with incentive spirometry, helps prevent this by keeping airways open and lungs expanded.