Family 411: Dry Drowning

- [Narrator] The following segment is sponsored by Northern Nevada Health System. - We're here at the Northern Nevada Health System at the ER at Damonte Ranch, where we have a registered nurse, Kortni Wong, talking to us about dry drowning. What is dry drowning, Kortni? - So, dry drowning is kind of an old, outdated term. - Okay. - It refers to when someone has drowned but there is no water in their lungs. So- - How does that happen? (Kortni laughs) - So our bodies are really smart in a lot of ways, right? But sometimes they overreact, or sometimes they protect us and then they don't stop. So, our throat can close off to prevent water from getting into the lungs because we don't want that, that's not air. Unfortunately, sometimes once we make it out of the water, our body doesn't know that it's safe. - Interesting. - And so that throat can remain closed off and you can have difficulty breathing and even die. - Okay, so this is the kind of season we're going into where a lot of kids are around pools, the lake, you name it. How do we know if a child's experiencing dry drowning? - So, one of the main things is they have to have had some kind of event underwater. So it can't happen completely dry, away from the water. It's kind of got a tricky name like that. But they'll have an event underwater, and then when they come out, you can notice difficulty breathing, they might have flared nostrils, they might be breathing hard with their belly, breaths might be really shallow or really, like, difficult. And then you can also notice they're really tired, they're not acting themselves, so. - So if a parent notices that sign in one of their children going through this, what should they do right away? - So, immediately you should call 911. You should absolutely call 911 and get help to you. But in the meantime, if you're comfortable, you can also provide rescue breaths if they're in distress. - What is that? - That's when you pinch their nose shut and you put your lips around their lips, or if they're really little, it can be their lips and their nose, and you exhale, you breathe a deep breath into their mouth. - Okay, just to get that process triggered and get that going. What are some ways a parent can help prevent dry drowning? - The best way is good safety around bodies of water. Have an adult around your kids, a designated adult who is sober, who is watching them. You can use flotation devices if they're not ready to swim on their own. And then swim lessons. Swim lessons are wonderful. - Yeah, good reminder for sure, again, as we're going into the warmer months. Kortni, thanks so much, really appreciate your time. - Thank you. - [Interviewer] And for more on dry drowning, go to our website.