7. Cough Flashcards
Mrs Virginia is a 78 year old woman who presents with a persistent cough. What specific questions should you ask her in the history?
Mrs Virginia’s complaint is an acute worsening of her productive cough. This therefore narrows the differentials down to an infectious cause. Of those, the absence of constitutional features and overseas travel makes TB unlikely.
Mrs Virginia has a pneumonia exacerbating her COPD. Her mild hypercapnia should not be a cause for concern as her pH is within the normal range suggesting the CO2 retention is chronic and therefore unlikely to be clinical significant.
Clinical features in the diagnosis of asthma?
Which patients should not necessarily be given 100% oxygen and why?