Asthma — severity signs
Mild : wheeze on expiration, speaks in sentences, saturation above 95 %.. Moderate : wheeze throughout, speaks in phrases, accessory muscle use.. Severe : speaks in single words, sitting forward, marked accessory muscle use, saturation under 90 %.. Imminent arrest : silent chest, drowsiness, confusion, paradoxical thoracoabdominal movement, bradycardia. A silent chest is not improvement. Wheezing requires airflow; its disappearance in a person still in distress means airflow has become too low to make a sound.