Pulm Clinical Medicine (except MDM) Flashcards
Describe the following for Pneumothorax:
- Percussion note:
- Breath sounds:
- Adventitious sounds:
- Fremitus:
Pneumothorax = air in the pleural space
- Percussion note: Hyperresonant
- Breath sounds: Decreased or absent
- Adventitious sounds: None
- Fremitus: Decreased fremitus
What conditions could cause B lines on ultrasound?
B lines are a marker of interstitial fluid or thickening of interstitial tissue
- Diffuse B lines = pulmonary edema
- Interstitial fluid
- Focal B lines = consolidation
- Fluid fills alveolar spaces, usually interstitial tissue is thickened
A patient has resonant percussion, vesicular breath sounds, normal fremitus, and rhonchi.
What is most likely wrong with the patient?
Chronic bronchitis
Rhonchi are caused by narrowing of the large airways
Adventitious breath sounds that are “countious, high-pitched, with a muscial quality and heard on ispiration” are most likely…
Stridor
What positions of comfort might indicate that a patient is in respiratory distress?
- Sniffing position
- Indicates upper airway obstruction (this is an emergency)
- Tripod breathing
- Optimizes the mechanics of breathing
Why is it important to collect “collateral information” when evaluating a patient with dyspnea?
Collateral information = information about changes to daily life that a patient makes to avoid dyspnea
Ex: They may resport little/no dyspnea, but what are they cutting out to avoid it?
Adventitious breath sounds that are “continous, high-pitched, with a musical quality, and loudest on expiration with an occasional squeek” are most likely…
Wheezes
What conditions would result in hyperresonance during percussion?
- More air in the chest cavity (lungs or pleural space)
- Emphysema
- Asthma
- Pneumothorax
What pathological changes cause wheezes on auscultation?
Narrowing or partial obstruction of intrathoracic (lower) airways
May be caused by asthma, bronchitis, bronchiolitis, or airway compression
What sign is shown in this image?
What pathology does it indicate?
Shred sign
Indicates pneumonia
A patient has hyperresonant percussion, decreased breath sounds, and decreased fremitus.
What is most likely wrong with the patient?
Pneumothorax
- Air in the pleural space
- Hyperresonant percussion occurs when there is increased air space in the chest
If you hear bronchovesicular or bronchial breath sounds in abnormal places, what pathology might be present?
Consolidation
Due to pneumonia or pulmonary hemorrhage
In a normal lung:
-
Bronchovesicular: Large airspaces
- 1st and 2nd interspaces anteriorly
- Between the scapulae
-
Bronchial: Large airways
- Over the manubrium (if at all)
Describe the following for Pleural effusion:
- Percussion note:
- Breath sounds:
- Adventitious sounds:
- Fremitus:
Pleural effusion = fluid in the pleural space
- Percussion note: Hyporesonant
- Breath sounds: Decreased
- Adventitious sounds: None or possible pleural rub
- Fremitus: Decreased fremitus
Trachea may be shifted toward infolved side if a large area of the lung is affected
In a normal lung, where would you hear bronchovesicular breath sounds? Bronchial breath sounds?
- Bronchovesicular: Large airspaces
- 1st and 2nd interspaces anteriorly
- Between the scapulae
- Bronchial: Large airways
- Over the manubrium (if at all)
A patient has resonant percussion, vesicular breath sounds, normal fremitus, and crackles.
What is most likely wrong with the patient?
Pulmonary edema
- Crackles are caused by small airways popping open
- Resonance and fremitus are normal because fluid is in the interstitium, not in the pleural space or airspaces
What will you see on a normal ultrasound of the lung?
- Bright white, horizontally-sliding pleura
- A-lines (green)
- Comet tails (a few)
What will you see on ultrasound if the patient has a pneumothorax?
- Comet tails are abent
- No pleural sliding where the pneumothorax is
- The rest of the pleura will slide
- Lung point may be visible
- Boundary between normal lung and pneumothorax
What conditions would result in increased tactile fremitus?
- Things that increase the amount of fluid in the lungs
- Pneumonia
- Pulmonary hemorrhage
If a patient is in respiratory distress, what signs can be seen in the neck?
Trapezius and sternocleidomastoid contraction
Tracheal tugging
What special tests can be performed to assess for consolidation of the lungs?
- Bronchophony
- Words will be louder than normal - “99”
- Whispered Pectoriloquy
- Intesnsification of whispered words - “1, 2, 3”
- Egophony
- Normal “ee” sounds will sound like a long “a”
If you hear stridor, what pathology is most likely present in the patient?
Upper airway obstruction
- Croup
- Laryngeal edema
- Airway compression
- Airway stenosis
What are the 4 key inputs that can drive dyspnea?
- Mechanoreceptors
- Chemoreceptors
- Neurohormonal uncoupling
- Psychosocial factors
Usually dyspnea is a combination of several of these factors
A patient presents with a cough. List the alarm sysmptoms that would warrant expedited or urgent evaluation
CHeWW-D CHESS
- Current/Former smoker with a New Cough
- Hemoptysis
- Wheezing and shortness of breath
- Weight gain
- Nocturnal Dyspnea
- Chest pain
- Hoarseness
- Peripheral Edema
- Trouble Swallowing
- Systemic (fever, weight loss)
Describe vesicular breath sounds
Normal breath sounds
- Heard over most of the lung field (except near large airways)
- Louder in inspiration than expiration
If a patient is working harder than usual to breathe, what facial signs might be present?
- Nasal flaring
- Head bobbing
- Retractions
- Grunting/breath holding
- Neck muscle use
What pathological changes cause stridor on auscultation?
Narrowing of the extrathoracic (upper) airway
May be due to croup, laryngeal edema, mass
On which side of the chest is it important to listen in the mid-axillary line?
Right
You are listening for the right middle lobe (the left lung does not have a middle lobe)
Describe the following for Consolidation:
- Percussion note:
- Breath sounds:
- Adventitious sounds:
- Fremitus:
Consolidation = fluid in the alveolar spaces
- Percussion note: Hyporesonant
- Breath sounds: Decreased
- Adventitious sounds: Crackles (late inspiratory)
- Fremitus: Increased fremitus
A 68 year-old man has severe smoking-related chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) causing lung hyperinflation. He takes an inhaled corticosteroid, an inhaled long-acting beta agonist, and an inhaled long-acting muscarinic antagonist daily. He uses 2 liters per minute supplemental oxygen to maintain adequate oxygen saturations at rest and with activity. The patient reports significant dyspnea with activity. The least likely cause of this patient’s dyspnea is:
- Hypoxemia
- Lung hyperinflation
- Deconditioning
- Severe airflow obstruction
a. Hypoxemia
Hypoxemia does not have a strong association with dyspnea. Additionally, lung hyperinflaiton, deconditioning, and sever airflow obstruction are all commonly seen in patients with COPD
Adventitious breath sounds that are “brief, intermittent, and discontinuous” are most likely…
Crackles
What pathological changes cause rhonchi on auscultation?
Narrowing of larger airways from secretions
May be present in bronchitis, bronchiolitis, COPD, and asthma
What are the 4 most important questions that must be answered when a patient presents to your clinic with a cough?
(You don’t need to ask the patients these exact questions, but you need them answered in order to make a diagnosis)
- Is the cough acute or chronic?
- Are any alarm symptoms present?
- Does the patient have comorbid conditions (COPD, asthma, bronchiectasis, rhinosinusitis, GERD)
- Is environment or medication playing a role?
Will a patient wtih asthma have increased fremitus or decreased fremitus?
Why?
Decresed
Asthma is an obstructive lung disease, resulting in hyperinflation of the alveoli. Fremitus is decreased when there is increased air in the alveolar spaces
If your patient has pneumonia, what will you see on ultrasound?
- Focal B lines
- Chains of white dots, indicate lung consolidatiosn
- Lung hepatization
- Dynamic air bronchograms
- Shred sign
- Disruption of the pleural line, like a bite is taken out
What is the differential diagnoses for wheezes?
Asthma
Bronchitis
Bronchiolitis
Airway compression (foreign body or mass)
What conditions would result in decreased tactile fremitus?
- Things that increase air or fluid in the pleural space
- Pleural effusion
- Pneumothorax
- Things that increase air in the lung
- Asthma
- Emphysema
List the 2 primary causes of neurohormonal uncoupling that contribute to dyspnea
- Increased load on the respiratory system
- Asthma, COPD, pneumonia, pulm. edema, ILD - Respiratory muscle weakness
- Muscle fatigue, neuromuscular weakness/disease, lung hyperinflation (associated with COPD)
What is the differential diagnosis for rhonchi?
Bronchitis
Bronchiolitis
Asthma
Which ultrasound probe has the highest resolution?
Which one penetrates the deepest?
Highest resolution = high frequency probe
Deepest penetration = low frequency probe