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CSI 1a > 6: Breathlessness > Flashcards

6: Breathlessness Flashcards

1
Q

What is Breathlessness?

A
  • shortness of breath
  • difficulty breathing
  • can be acute or chronic
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2
Q

What is the medical term for breathlessness?

A

Dyspnoea

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3
Q

What is the general reason for breathlessness?

A
  • body needs more oxygen than it is getting
  • breathe faster = increase flow of air to lungs
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4
Q

Who is affected by breathlessness?

A
  • everyone (when exercising)
  • overweight/not fit
    -underlying medical conditions: pneumonia/asthma/smokers/heart failure
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5
Q

How do you measure breathlessness?

A
  • Grade 0 = dyspnea with strenuous exercise
  • Grade 1 = hurrying/walking up a slight hill
  • Grade 2 = walks slower than people of same age/ has to stop for breath when walking at own pace
  • Grade 3 = stops for breath after walking 100 yards/ few mins
    Grade 4 = cannot leave house/ breathless when dressing
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6
Q

What investigations will be advised?

A
  • Sudden/Gradual?
    -Triggers?
  • How far can you walk?
  • Worse when lying down?
  • Do you feel ill/fever/weight loss/cough?
    -Pain in chest?
    -Coughing up coloured sputum?
    -Coughing up blood/travelled abroad/ in contact with TB?
    -Long flight/bed-bound?
    -Smoker?
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7
Q

What investigations will be conducted?

A
  • Check heart/bp/lungs
  • Lung function tests inc. peak flow reading
  • Chest X-ray
    -Blood tests: aneamia/underactive thyroid gland/ heart failure
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8
Q

Causes of Acute Breathlessness?

A
  1. Asthma
  2. Pneumonia
  3. COVID 19
  4. COPD
  5. Heart Disease
  6. Pulmonary Embolism
  7. Anxiety
  8. Medicines
  9. Other: Pain/Anaemia
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9
Q

Symptoms of Asthma?

A

-wheezy and breathless
-triggered by a cold/allergy

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10
Q

Symptoms of Pneumonia?

A

-severe chest infection = more breathless
-fever
-cough
-green sputum

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11
Q

Symptoms of COVID-19?

A

-causes breathlessness over a few days

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12
Q

Causes of COPD?

A

-long term lung condition = breathless and cough
-airways are inflamed and narrowed
-suddenly worse from chest infection
-usually affects smokers

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13
Q

Symptoms of Heart disease?

A

-causing heart failure
-no longer pumping efficiently
-build up of pressure in blood vessels which feed into the heart
-increased pressure makes fluid build up in body’s tissues
-gravity = extra fluid shows up as ankle swelling

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14
Q

Symptoms of Anxiety?

A
  • feelings of panic
    -rapid heartbeat (palpations)
    -sweating
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15
Q

Symptoms of Pulmonary Embolism?

A

-clot in the lung usually due to blood clot in leg
-painful swollen calf
-clot develops after being immobile for a long time
-travels in blood stream to lungs

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16
Q

Symptoms of other medicines?

A

-beta-blockers (propranolol)
-aspirin (asthma)

17
Q

What are the Long-term causes of breathlessness?

A
  1. Obesity: lack of fitness
  2. Asthma: poorly controlled
  3. COPD - lung diseases usually due to smoking
  4. Heart Failure
  5. Heart Rhythm Problems
  6. Anaemia
18
Q

How does heart failure contribute to breathlessness?

A
  • worse lying down
  • affects elderly
19
Q

How does heart rhythm problems contribute to breathlessness?

A
  • irregular heart bead = heart inefficient = oxygen not pumped around properly
  • breathe rapidly to get more oxygen into your lungs
  • rapid breathing makes you feel breathless
20
Q

How does anaemia contribute to breathlessness?

A
  • not enough Hb in blood to carry oxygen to cells = causes tiredness and breathlessness
  • heavy periods/ bleeding into gut in elderly (causes)
21
Q

Are there any treatments for breathlessness?

A
  • depends on cause
  • stop smoking
    -lose weight
  • referred to heart/lung specialist
  • most cases managed by GP
22
Q

What can you do if you feel very breathless?

A
  1. Keep calm
    2 Call 999 if severe and sudden - no cause
  2. Otherwise call GP
  3. Use inhaler if you have asthma
  4. Use oxygen if you have it
23
Q

How to manage chronic breathlessness?

A
  1. Breathing control techniques
  2. Comfortable seating and standing positions
24
Q

What are some breathing control techniques?

A
  1. Relaxed and slow and deep
  2. Paced: when walking or climbing stairs - try to breathe in rhythm with your steps
  3. Controlled: using diaphragm and lower chest muscles instead of upper chest and shoulder muscles - breathe gently - keep upper part relaxed
25
Q

What are the different comfortable seating and standing positions?

A
  1. Standing: lean from hips/ forearms resting on something at comfortable height
  2. Standing/Walking: hands on hips/in your pockets
  3. Sitting: lean forward/ rest forearms on knees or chair
  4. Arrange things that are easy to reach/ stay active
26
Q

How to avoid breathlessness?

A
  1. Find underlying cause and address it
  2. Don’t smoke or get help to quit smoking
  3. Maintain normal weight and regular exercise
27
Q

What is the outlook?

A
  1. Depends on cause - but generally good
  2. Smokers tend to get worse
  3. Might need oxygen

CSI 1a (2 decks)

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