COPD Flashcards
what are the three disorders that fall under the umbrella of COPD?
asthma
chronic bronchitis
emphysema
what is the genetic disorder that can lead to COPD?
alpha 1 antitrypsin deficiency
explain why alpha 1 antitrypsin can lead to over compliant lungs
alpha 1 antitrypsin is in charge of breakdown of elastase that breaks down elastin…since elastase is uninhibited with alpha 1 deficiency there will be a decrease in elastin
what two things does emphysema lead to that are detrimental to the lung function
loss of elastic recoil and airway collapse
what are four common symptoms of COPD?
dyspnea
cough
wheezing
fatigue
what are the signs of COPD?
barrel chest accessory muscle breathing wheezing LE edema decreased breath sounds
what do we use to diagnose COPD?
spirometry
what happens to the FEV/FVC in COPD?
it will be decreased
name the four classifications of COPD?
mild
moderate
severe
very severe
does you FEV/FVC lower limit of normal decrease or increase with age ?
decreases
what is the characteristic appearance of COPD on a flow volume curve?
it will be scooped out and have a lower max flow rate
how does FRC (functional residual capacity) change in COPD with damaged alveoli?
increased due to loss of elastic recoil
with COPD, during exercise does the FRC go up or down?
it will rise even more…airtrapping
if DLCO is decreased with COPD, are you more likely to have chronic bronchitis or emphysema?
emphysema
what does a blue bloater COPD have?
chronic bronchitis
what does a pink puffer COPD have?
emphysema
what is a complication of COPD that stems from chronic hypoxemia?
cor pulmonale…right heart failure from pulmonary hypertension
is there a cure COPD?
Nah
what is the primary characteristic of chronic bronchitis?
productive sputum
how do you diagnose emphysema?
CT scan…histologic diagnosis
smoking does two things that contribute to development of COPD…what are these two things?
leads to neutrophils turning on elastase and breaking down more elastin
inactivates a1 antitrypsin that would degrade elastase
in chronic bronchitis what two things happen that lead to physiologic obstruction?
filling of lumen with mucus
wall thickening/airway fibrosis
what happens in emphysema that leads to physiologic obstruction?
loss of tethering in the alveoli
what is the classification of COPD based on?
airflow limitation..specifically the FEV1/FVC ratio
what are the three things that improve COPD outcomes?
smoking cessation
lung ressection
oxygen
if COPD is in base of lung, is it likely genetic or other cause?
genetic defects hit the lower lungs
if COPD is in the apex of the lung, is it likely genetic or other cause?
other cause…genetic mainly base and others in apex
how long does cough for acute bronchitis have to be?
longer than 5 days…average is 18 days
is acute bronchitis usually caused by viral or bacterial infections?
viral infections
if a patient has a bacterial acute bronchitis, what else do they likely have?
another underlying respiratory disease
how long must cough be for chronic bronchitis?
3 months per year for at least two years
