DISEASE PROFILE
Date Assigned to Patient: 9/14/2011
Name of Major Medical Diagnosis: Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)
Definition: COPD is a progressive disease that makes it hard to breathe. "Progressive" means the disease get worse over time. It can cause coughing that produces large amount of mucus, wheezing, shortness of breath, chest tightness, and other symptoms.
Etiology: Most cases of COPD occur as a result of long-term exposure to lung irritants that damage the lungs and the airways.
In the United States, the most common irritant that causes COPD is cigarette smoke. Pipe, cigar, and other types of tobacco smoke also can cause COPD, especially if the smoke is inhaled.
Breathing in secondhand smoke,
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The main test for COPD is spirometry. Other lung function tests, such as a lung diffusion capacity test, also may be used.
Spirometry; During this painless test, a technician will ask you to take a deep breath in. Then, you'll blow as hard as you can into a tube connected to a small machine. The machine is called a spirometer.
The machine measures how much air you breathe out. It also measures how fast you can blow air out. Your doctor may have you inhale medicine that helps open your airways and then blow into the tube again. He or she can then compare your test results before and after taking the medicine.
Spirometry can detect COPD long before its symptoms appear. Doctors also may use the results from this test to find out how severe your COPD is and to help set your treatment goals.
The test results also may help find out whether another condition, such as asthma or heart failure, is causing your symptoms.
Other Tests
Your doctor may recommend other tests, such as: * A chest x ray or chest CT scan. These tests create pictures of the structures inside your chest, such as your heart, lungs, and blood vessels. The pictures can show signs of COPD. They also may show whether another condition, such as heart failure, is causing your symptoms. * An arterial blood gas test. This blood test measures the oxygen level in your blood using a sample of blood taken from an artery. The test can help find out how severe your COPD is and whether you may
Testing for COPD is needed to exclude other disease process. A chest x-ray can be used to exclude heart failure and other lung problems, such as lung nodules, mass or mass (Mayo Clinic, 2017). CT scan can help determine the presence of emphysema and screening for lung cancer. An ABG gives the clinician ability to see how well the body is oxygenating and compensating to maintain correct acid levels in the body. CBC, BMP, will evaluate for electrolyte and blood count. Lastly, screening for alpha-1-antitrypsin deficiency is used to determine family history of COPD (Mayo Clinic,
Rationale: L.J. exhibits symptoms of COPD that include shortness of breath and productive cough. He has a smoking history of 65-pack-year and smoking has been identified as the primary cause/trigger of the disease (Nagelmann et al., 2011).
COPD is almost always caused by smoking, or second hand smoke. The tobacco smoke irritates the airways and destroys the fibers in the lungs. Breathing in chemical fumes, dust, or air pollution over a long period of time may also cause it. It usually takes a long time for the lung damage to start causing symptoms, so COPD is most come in people who are older than 60.
The cause of COPD is from long term smokers and also from people who smoke marijuana which increases a higher risk of COPD. Normally it begins with a cold or infection of the pharynx. Chest pain along with coughing having shortness of breath, and wheezing
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is currently the fourth-leading cause of death in the world and serves as a steadily growing healthcare problem resulting in severe morbidity and mortality. It is estimated that by the year 2020, COPD will develop into the third-leading cause of death, resulting in 5 million deaths per year, and become the fifth-leading causing of disability worldwide. The progression of understanding regarding COPD and its components has steadily expanded over the past 200 years. Knowledge of the pathogenesis, course, prognosis, and new approaches to
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) (http://www.thehealthsite.com/diseases-conditions/copd/001/) is considered one of the most common causes of death in the world today and, it appears that most of the patients are active smokers. However, according to researchers, the pulmonary disease can affect everybody, not only people who smoke.
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is in the top five principal cause of death in the U.S. The disease is an abnormal inflammatory reaction in the lungs with limited airflow. COPD characteristically arises around the age 35. Smoking continues to be the main source of COPD, but is not the only known root cause. In many studies, smoking explanations for at least three fourths of COPD cases ("Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease | University of Maryland Medical Center," n.d.). Stopping smoking has been known to improve lung capabilities and help to prevent death from COPD. Genetic conditions and introductions to airborne toxins, irritants and gasses are correspondingly involved in the growth of the illness. A complete treatment plan could comprise of lifestyle changes, one or more medications, patient education, oxygen therapy respiratory rehabilitation, and surgery ("Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease | University of Maryland Medical Center," n.d.).
Some of the laboratory testing used to identify COPD are arterial blood gas and increased hematocrit levels. Arterial blood gas testing will reveals hypoxemia and hypercarbia due to the retention
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, also known as COPD, is the third leading cause of death in the United States. COPD includes extensive lungs diseases such as emphysema, non-reversible asthma, specific forms of bronchiectasis, and chronic bronchitis. This disease restricts the flow of air in and out of the lungs. Ways in which these limitations may occur include the loss of elasticity in the air sacs and throughout the airways, the destruction of the walls between air sacs, the inflammation or thickening of airway walls, or the overproduction of mucus in airways which can lead to blockage. Throughout this paper I am going to explain the main causes, symptoms, diagnosis, and ways to reduce COPD.
There are generally no noticeable early signs COPD, or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Symptoms only start to show after there's been damage to lung tissue. Symptoms of COPD usually get progressively worse after they first begin to appear. You can have COPD and be completely unaware of it - until you notice
A. has a history of smoking for 50 years and being diagnosed with COPD 2 years ago. Development of COPD and its exacerbations may be a leading caused by bacteria, viruses, or environmental pollutants, including cigarette smoke. Coussa, et al, “Expiratory flow limitation (EFL), as a consequence of airway inflammation is the pathophysiological hallmark of COPD.” Exacerbations fundamentally reflect acute worsening of EFL and there is evidence for both increased airway inflammatory activity and worsening airway obstruction as likely explanations.
As the number of smokers are rapidly increasing recently, the number of patients with COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease) is also gradually increasing. It is one of the most common chronic diseases and is considered to be one of the five leading diseases following heart disease, pneumonia, HIV and AIDS worldwide (GOLD, 2004). Smoking is the main cause of COPD. However, long term exposure to chemical fumes and air pollution could also cause COPD. This essay is all about how COPD affects individual, family and society as a whole across their lifespan. Also, it discusses the role of a nurse in caring patients with COPD.
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).
Diagnosing COPD is multifactorial, as stated previously, an all-encompassing nursing assessment and patient history must be conducted. When these processes are finalized, and subjective evidence points towards COPD, it is necessary to confirm the diagnosis with objective data. The definitive way to do this is by conducting pulmonary function testing (PFT); specifically, spirometry. On top of diagnosing, spirometry, is also pertinent for staging the patients COPD (Corbridge,et al., 2012). In addition to these facets, there are several other radiologic and laboratory tests that are helpful in determining the severity of COPD; they are not so much diagnostic, as they are informative.
Until now, early detection for respiratory system disease remains one of the challenges for patients who suffer from asthma or COPD.