Respiratory System Flashcards
Key parts of resp system
Upper Resp Tract (Bronchus up)
- Dual Function
Lower Resp Tract
Flu is what type of illness
Systemic, paired with Resp illness
Age related changes that affect respiratory funciton
- Degenerative structural changes in the nose
- Diminished blood flow to nose
- Thicker mucus in nasopharynx
- Stiffening of trachea due to calcification of cartilage
Blunted cough and laryngeal reflexes - Atrophy of laryngeal nerve endings
Chest wall and musculoskeletal age related changes oto resp function
Ribs and vertebrae become osteoporotic
- Intercostal cartilage calcifies and resp muscles weaken
Kyphosis
Chest wall expansion is compromised adn older adults need to expend more energy to achieve resp efficiency
Age related changes to lungs
Become Smaller + more fatty
Alveoli enlage and walls thin = gradual increase in anatomic dead space
Pulmonary artery gets wider, thicker, and less elastic
# of caps decrease
Cap blood volume decrease
Mucosal bed, site of diffusion, thickens
Gas exchange changes
Older adults shallow breathe more
Hyper capnia
High CO2
What stimulates breathing
Response to Hypercapnia and hypoxia
What cell is changed that causes an increase in prevalence of lung disease in older adults
T cells change
Summary of age related changes to resp
Increased stiffness of chest wall
Enlarged alveoli
Weaker respiratory muscles
Decreased response to hypercapnia or hypoxia
Risk factors affecting older adults
Tobacco smoking
Environmental pollutants
Occupational exposure to resp toxins
Obesity or chronic illness that interferes with the ability to obtain adequate physical
Kyphosis
Medications
Functional consequences to Older adults
Increased susceptibility to lower resp infections
- Pneumonia and influenza
Fraility and dysphagia
Poor Oral care
Aspiration Pneumonia
TB
Eats away at the tissue in the lungs
Lung tissue bleeds up through resp tract
Opportunistic illness
TB rates are highest
in Indigenous
persons, foreign-born, and certain ethnic
minorities
◦ Higher incidence of TB in Long Term Care
(LTC) residences related to virulence and
altered/ more subtle disease
manifestation in older adults
COPD
Chronic
Obstructive
Pulmonary
Disease
Including both chronic bronchitis
(affecting bronchi) and emphysema (chronic progressive
lung disease
COPD Characterized by
chronic airflow obstruction that
interferes with normal breathing
(inflammation of bronchus)
Risk factors for developing COPD
Smoking (primary cause)
◦ Exposure to secondhand smoke and other air pollutants
◦ Increased age
◦ Genetic predisposition
◦ Low Socioeconomic status
◦ History of significant childhood respiratory disease (chronic advanced asthma)
COPD symptoms
Chronic productive cough worsening dyspnea,
especially with exertion
◦ Wheezing and chronic sputum production
◦ Barrel-chest over time due to trapped air in the
lungs
◦ Chest tightness
◦ Fatigue
◦ Cyanosis of the fingernail beds and lips
Progression of COPD
Progressive and cumulative
Men or women have higher COPD mortality rates
Men
Treatment of COPD
Bronchodilators (nebulized, metered dosed
inhalers or MDI’s)
Inhaled steroids (nebulized or MDI)
Combination inhalers
Oral steroids (in exacerbations of COPD
only)
Continuous or Intermittent O2 therapy (in
later stages)
Pneumonia
An infection in one or both lungs causing alveoli to fill with fluid or pus making breathing difficult
Risk factors for pneumonia
Age
◦ Recent upper respiratory illness
◦ Asthma/ COPD/ CHF/ other chronic diseases
◦ Smoking
◦ Weakened or suppressed immune system
Symptoms of pneumonia in normal adults
Cough, fever, purulent sputum, SOB, fatigue, chest tightness/pain
Older adults symptoms of pneumonia
Present atypically in older adults
acute delirium/ confusion
◦ dizziness
◦lower than normal body temperature
(cold vs warm sepsis, with T < 36 C)
Treatment for pneumonia
Antipyretics for fever (ie. Acetaminophen)
Antibiotics (if bacterial vs viral)
Bronchodilators if wheezes present
Oxygen therapy if needed
Deep breathing and coughing (ex. incentive
spirometer)
Do antibiotics treat viral pneumonia
No
Most virus flus are 14 days
Antibiotics are just a placebo, killing gut flora
How can bacterial pneumonia be identified
Throat swab
TB
A bacterial infection (caused by the
Mycobacterium Tuberculosis) that most commonly
affects the lungs
Droplet spread
Endemic vs pandemic
Endemic does not have an end
Risk factors for TB
Persons who have been recently exposed to
someone with active TB
Persons with weakened immune systems related
to chronic disease or high risk behavior
Symptoms of TB
Persistent coughing that lasts three or more weeks
Coughing up blood
Chest pain, or pain with breathing or coughing
Unintentional weight loss
Fatigue
Fever
Night sweats
Chills
