Disorders of the Respiratory System Part 2

In our original article disorders of the respiratory system we touched on various common disorders but felt there was many more common disorders that needed to be covered to full have a grasp on the alignments that can affect the respiratory system.

Pleurisy is inflammation of the visceral and parietal pleura it can be bacterial or viral. Many times pleurisy can occur spontaneously or from the results of pneumonia, pleural trauma, or viral infections. Signs and symptoms of pleurisy can include sharp inspiratory pain, cough, pleural friction rub, elevated temperature and dyspnea.

Pleural effusion is accumulation of fluid due to the inflammation of pleura. Pleural effusion is usually seen as a result from another disease, for example: pulmonary edema, cirrhosis, and pancreatitis.

Empyema is the accumulation of fluid of the pleura but unlike pleural effusion this fluid is infected. The signs and symptoms of pleural effusion and empyema include dyspnea, diminished breath sounds, tachycardia and persistent elevated temperatures.

Pulmonary Embolism is caused by the passage of a blood clot, air, amniotic fluid or fat into the pulmonary artery causing the blood supply to be obstructed to the tissue. The signs and symptoms of pulmonary embolisms include dyspnea, possible hemoptysis, tachypnea, diminished breath sounds or wheezing breath sounds, possible signs of atelectasis, and chest pain upon deep inspiration.

Atelectasis is what is also termed as a collapsed lung whether it is a total collapsed lung or a partial collapsed lung. When atelectasis occurs air exchange cannot occur in the lung, it can be caused by fluid accumulation, post op shallow breathing, and trauma or by a foreign body. The signs and symptoms include anxiety, HTSN, tachypnea, dyspnea, and elevated temperature.

Pneumothorax is the collection of gas or air in the pleural space causing the lung to collapse this can occur due to trauma, severe coughing, ruptured bleb, or spontaneously. The signs and symptoms of pneumothorax include anxiety, history of chest injury, dyspnea, tachycardia, diaphoresis, decreased breath sounds that are one sided, tachypnea, and asymmetrical chest movement which occurs in severe cases of pneumothorax.

Adult respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is not considered a disease but a complication of a pulmonary injury for example; chest trauma, sepsis, pneumonia, aspiration, COPD, embolism and even a drug overdose. In ARDS the alveoli collapse and a decrease in surfactant product occurs, this then inhibits normal gas exchange. The signs and symptoms of ARDS include lung tissue damage, hypovolemic shock, subtle respiratory status changes, respiratory distress, crackles, wheezing, restlessness and lethargy. Problems can manifest 12 to 24 hours after an injury.

As you can see there are many common disorders of the respiratory system, please read article 3 in the series that will complete our introduction to respiratory disorders.