D. D. is a 66 year-old female suffering from shortness of breath. She smoked 2 p

Question

D. D. is a 66 year-old female suffering from shortness of breath. She smoked 2 packs a day until she quit 2 years ago. She has a history of bronchiolitis, hyperinflated lungs, pulmonary edema, and syncope. Her primary care practitioner suspects she also has pulmonary hypertension (PH). After examination, D. D. has a PAP of 35mmHg and mild CHF.

Citing scholarly resources, answer the following questions:

1.What is pulmonary hypertension and how could D. D. have developed PH?

2.How does her history fit in with her new diagnosis?

3.How many patients are suffering from COPD in the United States? Do COPD sufferers die of respiratory causes or other causes? (Be sure to cite thesource of data.)

Explanation / Answer

Pulmonary hypertension is a condition of increased blood pressure within arteries of the lungs.Symptoms include shortness of breath,tiredness,chestpain,fast heartbeat etc. A specific gene mutaion can cause Pulmonary hyper tension to develop,bit in case of D.D smoking might be one of the major causes of hypertension.As she has major symptoms for brochiolitis, hyperinflated lungs, pulmonary edema nd also chances of pulmonary hypertension ,the diagnosis might be bit complicated .Tests like physical examination of the patient, echocardiography, ventillation perfusion scintigraphy ,bronchiodilators, nebulization etc can be preferred.A series of tests must be performed to distinguish between all the occurences for the patient in order to provide a good treatment.

Almost 15.7 million americans reported that they have been diagnised with COPD.More than 50% adults with low pulmonary function were not even aware that they had COPD.The most common cause of death in COPD is respiratory failure.After months,years or even decades of struggling with lung problems,the patient lungs eventually stop working.Heart failure is also a factor for COPD fatalities with often contributing to heart problems.

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