Final Exam: Week 4 Pulmonary Flashcards
Pulmonary disease prevalence
- Third highest cause of mortality in the U.S
- 15% of U.S adults have chronic lung disease such as asthma or COPD
- 10% report mild symptoms
- > 33% report persistent moderate to severe symptoms that impact quality of life
Bronchitis and emphysema
- Chronic airflow limitation
- Most commonly associated with a history of smoking
How is asthma characterized?
Hyper-excitability of bronchial smooth muscle
- May occur on its own or as a component of chronic airflow limitation
Restrictive lung disease
Common in older age groups as a result of prolonged exposure to pulmonary irritants over the life span
Factors that affect pulmonary health in elders
Impaired oxygen transport (physical inactivity, sarcopenia, cardiovascular abnormalities) and lifestyle factors
COPD lung diseases
Emphysema and chronic bronchitis
Is COPD preventable?
Yes, but it is also progressive
Risk factors for COPD
- Smoking
- Environmental pollutants
- History of asthma
Characterization of COPD
-Airflow obstruction impacting gas exchange causing dyspnea - Limited reserve lung capacity with greater risk of hypoxemia
CO2 retention
Patients struggle to exhale enough CO2 when they breathe out, excess carbon dioxide builds up in patient’s blood which can cause serious symptoms making it difficult to breathe
- Trapped CO2 takes up space that is needed to hold oxygen rich air when breathing in
Alveoli damage with COPD
Damage to alveoli and lung tissue prevents patients from pushing all of the CO2 out of their lungs → airway narrowing, blockage, and other changes in the lungs
CO2 build up in the blood
- Fewer healthy alveoli making it difficult to get enough oxygen into the blood
- Imbalance between blood oxygen and carbon dioxide levels, leads to oxygen deprivation
- CO2 gets reabsorbed back into the blood, leaving fewer healthy red blood cells to pick up oxygen
Ventilation-perfusion mismatch
When the body gets confused about which parts of the lungs to prioritize, reducing the efficiency of gas exchange in the lungs
Hypercapnia
Blood CO2 gets too high→leads to serious breathing problems and dangerously low levels of oxygen in your blood
Clavicular breathing
Too shallow to be effective, diaphragmatic breathing should be practiced
Symptoms of CO2 retention
- Mild headaches
- Feelings of drowsiness
- Lack of energy
- Inability to focus
- Feeling dizzy
- Shortness of breath
More severe symptoms of hypercapnia
- Unexplained confusion
- Abnormal muscle twitching
- Abnormal depression or paranoia
- Irregular heartbeat
- Bluish tint to skin and lips
- Swollen hands and feet
- Hyperventilation
- Seizures
- Loss of consciousness
Causes of CO2 retention
Supplemental oxygen at too high rate and severe emphysema
OT role with COPD and CO2 retention/hypercapnia
Pursed-lips breathing and diaphragmatic breathing to help patients train themselves how to empty the lungs more completely during exhalation
Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) definition
Acute life-threatening inflammatory reaction to illness or trauma
ARDS complications
Severe pneumonia, sepsis, major trauma
- Severity influenced by age, comorbidities, and alcohol consumption
Lung inflammation
Causes injury to lungs→ fluid build up in alveoli, compromising gas exchange, difficulty breathing, and increased risk of respiratory failure
What % of ARDS cases are fatal?
40%
Interstitial lung disease (ILD)
Group of disorders that share similar clinical profiles
