Defining characteristics of the nursing diagnosis "ineffective airway clearance".

Objective: to analyze the defining characteristics of the nursing diagnosis "ineffective airway clearance" in children with acute respiratory infection.

Method: cross-sectional descriptive study, developed in two hospitals specialized in care for children. It was held a detailed respiratory evaluation of the child to identify the defining characteristics of the diagnosis under study.

Clinical Differentiation of Respiratory Nursing Diagnoses among Children with Acute Respiratory Infection.

The aim of this study was to identify the defining characteristics that allow clinical differentiation of the nursing diagnoses, ineffective breathing pattern (IBP), ineffective airway clearance (IAC), and impaired gas exchange (IGE). A secondary analysis with a cohort design was developed from 1128 records obtained during the hospital stay of 136 children with acute respiratory infection. Groups of defining characteristics with greater differentiation capacity were identified by multiple correspondence analyses.