Pulmonary Function Testing - Essay Example

"Pulmonary Function Testing" is a decent example of a paper on diagnostic tests.
According to The COPD guidelines, the diagnosis should be carried out on any patient above the age of 40 and one who has a prolonged cough producing or not producing sputum. The health care workers to make a more accurate diagnosis should use spirometry (American college of chest physicians, 2010). The level of the disease is accessed to establish the scope to which it affects the health of the patient as well as future occurrences such as exacerbations and death. The physicians go to the extent of testing for comorbid attributed to the deaths of most patients. Comorbid includes lung cancer, pneumonia, cardiovascular diseases, and anxiety. Their diagnosis and treatment will help reduce the rates of hospitalization and chances of death. There are four stages of COPD including the first stage which is mild, the second phase moderate, the third stage severe, and finally the last stage very severe. The management of COPD depends on the level of diagnosis (Barnes 2008).  The physicians aim to reduce the symptoms through physical exercise and medication and decrease the chances of future risks such as disease progression and death. There are several therapies available for COPD patients. Bronchodilators are recommended and are grouped as either long term or short term. It is advisable for a patient to be put on a long-term treatment that has fewer side effects compared to the short term. Along with the term, therapy of inhaled corticosteroids is more preferable for severe patients. The COPD guidelines stipulate that the best way to prevent COPD is to quit smoking, avoid inhaling harmful gases, exercising regularly, and eating healthy and frequent vaccination.

As per the case study, the patient is diagnosed to be on the first level of COPD characterized by frequent coughing forced expiratory volume less than 80 percent and less than three exacerbations per year according to the COPD guidelines. The patient is experiencing two exacerbations in a year, comorbid such as lung infection and pneumonia. According to the diagnosis, the patient is stable and the COPD guidelines suggest the use of inhaled bronchodilators to open up the obstructed air passage. The patient is experiencing two exacerbations and should be put on monotherapy with a β-agonist inhaler that is more effective.

The phosphodiesterase-4 inhibitor can be alternatively be used since the patient has severe airflow limitation. Other recommended drugs include amoxicillin second generation, cephalosporin doxycycline, and trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole to reduce the risk of pathogens such as influenza, catarrhalis, and pneumonia. To reduce the risk of antibiotics; they should be switched to different lines frequently. The patient should also undergo another pulmonary rehabilitation to reduce symptoms of respiratory systems such as difficulty in breathing (Donner 2005). This will include taking a short walk say 200 meters.

To control the disease, the patient should first quit smoking which is the major cause of COPD. The physicians should enroll her in a substance abuse rehabilitation program since the patient could not quit without medical treatment. Regular Exercising will help reduce breathing obstruction and enhance blood flow (George 2005). A healthy diet will also help in controlling the situation.