227 Midterm Flashcards
how to calculate cigarette pack-year
multiply the number of packs of cigarettes smokes each day by the number of years that they’ve smoked
cigarette smoking
the most important risk factor for developing COPD
pack-years and COPD
risk of COPD increases with the number of pack-years
history of >40 pack-years is a strong indicator that an individual may develop COPD
COPD risk factors
- cigarette smoke
- organic or inorganic dusts/chemicals
- lung infections
- heredity
- agin
common early COPD signs
- morning cough
- increased production of sputum
- breathlessness with exertion
Pulmonary Function tests
diagnostic test for COPD
includes FEV1/FVC -> determines if a person has persistent airflow limitation
measure lung volume, capacities, rate of flow, and gas exchange
a bronchodilator is administered to get rid of any reversible airflow restriction (like asthma) before testing for COPD
FEV1/FVC
FEV1 over FVC is one of the values calculated from a pulmonary function test
FEV1 is the forced expiratory volume in 1 second
FVC is the forced vital capacity, which is the total amount of air that you can forcefully blow out of your lungs (from a deep breath)
normal FEV1/FVC = 80% or more
COPD FEV1/FVC = 70% or less
- changes in lungs will cause people for COPD to have a decreased FVC and decreased FEV1
obstructive lung disease
COPD
difficulty getting air out of their lungs
- decreased elasticity of their lungs
- increased production of mucous
- change in structure of their chest, barrel chest (only occurs if they have had COPD for a long time)
restrictive lung disease
person has difficulty getting into their lungs
lungs are restricted from expanding fully
chronic bronchitis
is a form of COPD
mainly effects the small airways
bronchitis refers to the inflammation of the bronchi
inflammation irritates the airways, causing them to secrete thick, sticky mucous, and causes swelling in the airways making it difficult for air to pass
presence of a chronic productive cough for 3 months in 2 successive years
emphysema
a form of COPD
affects the alveoli in the lungs
sacs become damaged and individual alveoli start to merge together -> there is less surface area in a large sac, compared to multiple individual alveoli -> reduces the amount of gas exchange that occurs
larger sacs are also less elastic and don’t shrink back to their normal size -> more like pillow cases than balloons -> makes it harder to get air out of the lungs
are weak and easy to tear -> can cause air to leak into the plural space -> causes a pneumothorax
