Pulmonology Flashcards
What scoring ranges does the Pediatric Asthma Score have?
1-10
- 1-2: mild
- 3: mild-moderate
- 4-5: moderate
- 6-10: severe
What are the components of the PAS system?
Dyspnea
Oxygen requirement
Work of breathing
Auscultation
RR
Remember that you want to DO WAR on asthma with the PAS.
Review the stages of coughing and the problems and interventions that can be done at each stage.
1) Inspiratory phase
2) Glottic stop
3) Expiratory phase
4) Expulsion or ingestion of mucus
- Neuromuscular disorders affect ability to cough at nearly every stage. A cough-assist device can help, which is essentially a mini puff of air followed by suction (like the inspiratory and expiratory phases).
- Mucolytic meds and chest PT can help with expulsion of mucus.
Review the different ways of helping with mucus clearance.
- Nebulized hypertonic saline
- Nebulized Pulmozyme (DNAse)
- Nebulized N-acetylcysteine (Mucomyst)
- Acapella (physical vibration of air to help shake clear the secretions)
- Chest vest and manual PT (physically shaking mucus off)
- Suction
PETCO2 is usually _____ than PACO2.
less
Not all of the CO2 in blood (PACO2) is expired into the alveoli (PETCO2).
What are the different types of capnography?
- Colorimetric capnography: color changing device attached to vent
- Waveform capnography: plotted data of the PETCO2 over time
Why is capnography helpful in procedural sedation?
Rising PETCO2 happens before hypoxemia (it’s more sensitive) in hypoventilation, so it can clue you into a patient who needs more airway support.
Capnography > ____________ has been shown to correlate with adequate CPR.
20 mm Hg
If you see a cleft in the capnographic waveform, what might this mean?
Patient-ventilator dysynchrony (“fighting the vent”)
A quick loss of PETCO2 indicates what two possibilites?
- Loss of ETT
- Loss of CO
Essentially, if the CO2 stops coming then it’s either not being produced (because the heart isn’t pumping) or it’s not being detected because the tube dislodged.
Colorimetric capnography turns what color when the patient is exhaling?
Yellow (“mellow yellow”)
There is a pH indicator that detects the slight drop in pH when more CO2 enters the air.
What’s a normal PETCO2?
35 mm Hg
How does capnography work?
- Qualitative capnography uses a pH paper that turns yellow when CO2 passes through it.
- Quantitative capnography uses the absorption of infrared light through the nasal cannula line to detect CO2.
Those with simple PTX (no vital sign abnormalities) should be given _____________.
supplemental oxygen
This can speed up the resorption of pleural air.
A reduction by __% or more in peak expiratory flow signifies severe asthma exacerbation.
50
How should you use the STOP-Bang criteria?
People who score <3 on the STOP-Bang are very unlikely to have OSA and can most likely avoid polysomnography.
Criteria:
- Snoring
- Observed apnea
- Daytime somnolence
- Male sex
- BMI greater than 35
- Neck circumference greater than 40 cm
- Age greater than 50 years
The first-line treatment for allergic bronchopulmonary asspergillosis is ____________.
gluococrticoids
Steroids decrease the pulmonary inflammation that allows the fungus to thrive, so controlling the inflammation usually resolves the fungal infection.
For severe cases or those that don’t respond to initial steroid treatment, itraconazole or voriconazole can be considered.
Difficult-to-control asthma accompanied by brownish sputum and occasional hemoptysis is suggestive of ________________.
allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis
A pulmonary nodule, by definition, is an opacity less than or equal to ______ cm in diameter.
3
Anything bigger is a mass.
Note: it also has to be rounded and surrounded by pulmonary parenchyma. Anything that is spiculated is not a nodule. Anything surrounded by inflammation, a cavity, or edema is not a nodule.
What is the management of a pulmonary nodule?
First, make sure it is a nodule (0.8 - 3.0 cm, not spiculated, surrounded by normal lung).
Second, look for prior imaging. If a nodule has not changed in 2 or more years then no further follow-up is required.
Third, if no further imaging exists then obtain a high-resolution CT of the chest.
Review the risk of malignancy of pulmonary nodules by size.
- Less than 0.6 cm is low risk
- 0.6 to 2.0 cm is intermediate risk
- Greater than 2.0 cm is high risk
Flash pulmonary edema is now called __________.
SCAPE (sympathetic crashing acute pulmonary edema)
A key feature of SCAPE is what vital sign abnormality?
HTN (SBP > 160 or MAP > 120)
What happens in SCAPE is that hypertension leads to pulmonary edema which then leads the body to release epinephrine. The excess epinephrine increases the hypertension and worsens the cycle. This is the spiral that causes SCAPE.
True or false: those with SCAPE will have whiteout on their CXRs.
False
Because it is so acute, the fluid has not gotten a chance to accumulate enough in the interstitium to show up on CXR.
Which agent should you give for air hunger in SCAPE?
Fentanyl
It treats the air hunger. Morphine has been shown in studies to worsen outcomes.
Many patients will be elderly so avoid benzodiazepines.
What is the definition of pneumonia?
Lung inflammation caused by a bacterial, viral, or fungal infection in which the air sacs of the lungs fill with pus and may become solid
Review the criteria and scoring grades of Wells PE.
- Signs of DVT: 3
- PE most likely diagnosis: 3
- HR > 100: 1.5
- Prior DVT/PE: 1.5
- Immobilization at least 3 days: 1.5
- Hemoptysis: 1
- Malignancy within past 6 months: 1
1 is low (D-dimer ok)
2-6 is moderate
7-12.5 is high
A pleural-based wedge infarction (a sign of PE) is called _____________.
Hampton hump
Review Light criteria.
WBC > 10,000
Fluid to serum protein ratio > 0.5
Fluid to serum LDH radio > 0.6
Fluid LDH > 2/3 ULN
What is the Westermark sign?
It is a chest XR finding in which blood is limited to a region and appears radiolucent
Review the EKG findings that can be seen in PE?
Sinus tachycardia
RAD
S1Q3T3
Peaked P waves (RA enlargement)
Patients who have decompression of their pneumothorax can have ______________ (particularly if the PTX has been present for several days or more).
reexpansion pulmonary edema
Which XR view is most useful for detecting pleural effusion?
Lateral decubitus on the affected side
What can cause a false-negative chest X-ray in pneumonia?
Dehydration