Chronic Lung Disease : Symptoms And Treatment

R.W. appears with progressive difficulty getting his breath while doing simple tasks, and also having difficulty doing any manual work, complains of a cough, fatigue, and weight loss, and has been treated for three respiratory infections a year for the past 3 years. On physical examination, CNP notice clubbing of his fingers, use accessory muscles for respiration, wheezing in the lungs, and hyperresonance on percussion of the lungs, and also pulmonary function studies show an FEV1 of 58%. These all symptoms and history represented here most strongly indicate the probability of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). COPD is a respiratory disease categorized by chronic airway inflammation, a decrease in lung function over time, and gradual damage in quality of life (Booker, 2014).

(mesothelioma.com). It is always fatal and forms in the protective tissues that cover the lungs, abdomen, chest cavity, gastrointestinal system, and the reproductive organs. It can cause pleural effusion, which is when excess fluids build up in the pleural space in the lungs. The pleural space is the area between the lungs and the chest wall, and the person coughs up the fluids. The more fluids are present, the more difficult it is for the person to breathe. Asbestosis is an illness caused by inhaling asbestos fibers that lodge deep in the lungs. Asbestosis causes scarring or triggers growth of excess tissue that is a condition called fibrosis. There is no cure for asbestosis, and it makes breathing extremely painful and often causes death from lung or heart failure. If those things do not happen the person will eventually suffocate.

phrase used to describe respiratory diseases characterized by airway obstruction. COPD is now a well-known and serious chronic disease, killing many and affecting a mass number of people per year. COPD is a result in restricted (obstructed) airflow in the lungs. Obstructive diseases include bronchitis, in which inflammation causes chronic bronchial secretions and narrowing of the bronchi and emphysema a permanent destructive enlargement of the airspaces within the lung.

This causes further damage to the lung. This hyperinflation of the lung is known as emphysema. In emphysema, the alveoli are permanently enlarged leading to a dramatic decline in the alveolar surface area available for gas exchange (Workman, 2013). The permanent enlargement of the alveoli is caused by the overabundance of proteases. When proteases are present in higher-than-normal levels, alveoli is damaged as the proteases break down the elastin located within the lung. When elastin is broken down, lung elasticity is decreased and air is permanently trapped within the air spaces (Workman, 2013). These overall changes from both bronchitis and emphysema lead to hypoxemia, decreased oxygenation, and respiratory

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder, or COPD, is a relatively common chronic illness that is treatable, however there is currently has no cure. COPD is an illness that encompasses two major illnesses these illnesses are chronic bronchitis and emphysema. Both of these illnesses wreak havoc on the lungs of the affected person by causing mucus to build up in the bronchioles henceforth reducing the effectiveness of the alveoli which impairs gas exchange. According to the American Lung Association, “COPD is the third leading cause of death in the United States. More than 11 million people have been diagnosed with COPD, but an estimated 24 million may have the disease without even knowing it” (American Lung Association [ALA], n.d.). As this data from the American Lung Association shows, in the United States alone we may have a total of 35 million people (almost one tenth of the American population) living with COPD. QSEN, which stands for Quality and Safety Education for Nurses, has developed six competencies related to nursing care. These competencies are Patient-Centered Care, Teamwork and Collaboration, Evidence-Based Practice, Quality Improvement, Safety, and Informatics. These aforementioned QSEN competencies break down how nurses should be treating patients and working with the health care team.

gases out of the alveoli. Where as normal lunges look like new sponges, emphysema lungs look like

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a lung disorder characterized by a small airway obstruction and reduction in expiratory flow rate (Arcangelo & Peterson, 2013). It affects over ten percent of the United States’ population, is the 4th leading cause of death, and costs over $37 billion annually to treat (Arcangelo & Peterson, 2013). In 2013, 2.8% of every 100,000 diagnosed with COPD, died from chronic bronchitis or emphysema related causes (CDC, 2014). Common risk factors for the development of COPD include smoking, air pollution, chronic respiratory infections, and hyperresponsive airways due to asthma (Arcangelo & Peterson, 2013). Unfortunately, early signs and symptoms of COPD are practically nonexistent. Once a patient starts exhibiting symptoms, the disease has progressed significantly (Arcangelo & Peterson, 2013). Pulmonary function tests are essential to diagnose COPD. Forced vital capacity, or the maximum amount of air exhaled with force, indicates lung size (Arcangelo & Peterson, 2013). Forced expiratory volume (FEV1) measures the maximum amount of air expired in one second (Arcangelo & Peterson, 2013). FEV1 and symptoms exhibited are used to stage COPD (Arcangelo & Peterson, 2013). COPD is staged at five levels of severity (Refer to Appendix for severity scale). The severity of COPD is defined by FEV 1 %, or the maximal amount of air forcefully exhaled in one second using spirometry (Timmins, et.al., 2012). Emphysema and chronic

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary disorder (COPD) is a very prevalent disease in the world today with the most common cause being related to tobacco smoke. Not only is it associated with lung disease, but it has also been seen to be linked with many other comorbidities. However, the most concerning effect that COPD has on the body is towards the muscular dysfunction of skeletal muscle. Reasons, that are independent of lung function, that make this so concerning includes; an overall decrease in functional capacity, a poor quality of life, an increase in health care utilization, or even mortality. COPD has been linked to vitamin D deficiency. However, the effects of Vitamin D deficiency, pertaining to COPD, on skeletal muscle has

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) affects an estimated 24 million individuals in the United States, where half of these people do not even know they have it (COPD Foundation 2014). COPD governs a deluge of ailments including: emphysema, refractory asthma, some forms of bronchiectasis, and the very prevalent chronic bronchitis. Chronic Bronchitis is a long-term pulmonary disease where there is a problem in the airway of the lungs, making it very difficult to breath, especially when one is trying to exhale air out of the airways. It is clinically defined as cough production of sputum occurring on most days in three consecutive months over two consecutive years (Chaudhry

Unfortunately, there is currently no cure for COPD, but there are medications that are available to help the symptoms and make it easier for the person to breathe. Bronchodilators are a type of medication that will help open the airways to get better airflow. Short acting bronchodilators are used in emergency situations for rapid relief. Some short acting bronchodilators are Albuterol, levalbuterol (Xopenex), and Ipratropium (Atrovent). They can come in an inhaler or in a liquid that can be inhaled from a nebulizer. There are some side effects to the short acting bronchodilators including dry mouth, blurred vision, tremors, tachycardia, or a cough. Long acting bronchodilators help treat the symptoms of COPD over a longer period of time, so it may take longer to see results. Patients can use long acting bronchodilators once or twice a day depended on how bad the symptoms are, which also comes in inhalers or a liquid that can be put in a nebulizer. Some examples of the medication are Tiotropium (Spiriva), Salmeterol (Serevent, Formoterol (Foradil, Perforomist), Arformoterol (Brovana), Indacaterol (Arcapta), Aclidinium (Tudorza). (Mayo Clinic Staff, 2015). Over time these medications will help if the person takes them continually. Long acting Bronchodilators are not used as emergency or rescue medication. Some of the side effects of these medications are dry mouth, dizziness, tremors, runny nose, an irritated or scratchy throat, allergic reactions, blurred vision, and

All over the world, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a very significant and prevalent cause of morbidity and mortality, and it is increasing with time (Hurd, 2000; Pauwels, 2000; Petty, 2000). Due to the factor of COPD being an underdiagnosed and undertreated disease, the epidemiology (Pauwels, Rabe, 2004) is about 60 to 85 % with mild or moderate COPD remaining undiagnosed (Miravitlles et al., 2009; Hvidsten et al., 2010).

There are an abundance of different types of respiratory diseases/disorders. Many respiratory disorders cause difficulty breathing, shortness of breath, coughing, etc. Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disorder (COPD) is a general term for a group of different lung diseases, such as emphysema or bronchitis. COPD is a progressive lung disorder which means it starts out slowly developing and gradually worsens over time. COPD, similar to other respiratory diseases, may start out with mild symptoms that the average person may not associate with having a disease. COPD is a progressive “lung disease characterized by chronic obstruction of lung airflow that interferes with normal breathing and is not fully reversible”

Around 2 million Americans suffer from emphysema. Emphysema is known as a disease of the lung that cause shortness of breath due to over inflation of the alveoli or air sacs in the lungs. It is a progressive and irreversible condition in which the alveoli are damaged by inhaled irritants. In this paper I will be discussing with you the causes, the process in which this disease develops, signs and symptoms, the diagnosis, and any treatment of emphysema.

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is one of the leading cause of death in the world. Because smoking is the main cause of COPD, abstinence from smoking manages it. Medical researchers have conducted novel research to observe the effectiveness of smoking cessation on COPD patients, while some have summarized and analyzed previous research to recommend involvement of nurses in intervention programs. The main aim of research in this field is to measure the severity of the disease and analyze the possible effective ways of reducing the harsh effects of smoking in COPD patients. Research in this field also draws scholarships from broad topics like use of ATS guidelines to measure the severity of restrictive lung disease. The research

Chronic Obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) has been known as umbrella diagnosis of multiple pulmonary disorders. COPD is a complex disorder that is very prevalent in the older adult population and causes significant complications in the older adult due to age related aspects and multiple co morbidities that are involved. According to the World Health Organization, COPD is defined as chronic obstruction of lung airflow that can be irreversible and results in decreased pulmonary lung function. COPD consists of two intertwined which are difficult to distinguish which are chronic bronchitis and emphysema. Chronic bronchitis is an inflammation of the lining of your bronchial tubes, and emphysema occurs when the alveoli are gradually destroyed. The American College of Chest Physicians defines chronic bronchitis as "productive cough that is present for a period of 3 months in each of 2 consecutive years in the absence of another identifiable cause of excessive sputum production". COPD can be difficult to manage in the older adult due to several factors such as frailty, cognitive decline, co morbid conditions, medication adherence, and lack of support and understanding of the disease. These factors can result in readmissions to hospitals, poor patient outcomes and increase in morbidity and mortality.