Altered Patterns of Respirations

Tachypnea

“ Tachypnea is defined as a breathing rate that is higher than the normal breathing rate. ”

Symptoms:

•                    A blue or gray color to your skin, nails and/or lips

•                    Chest pain

Causes:

•              Sepsis 

•              Acidosis

 

Bradypnea

“ Bradypnea is an abnormally slow breathing rate.”

Symptoms:

•                    Dizziness

•                    Feeling extremely tired (fatigue)

Causes:

•              Head injuries

•              Opioids

 

Polypnea

“ It is defined as rapid or panting respiration. ”

Symptoms:

•                   Shallow breathing

•                   Rapid breathing

Causes:

•              Increased metabolic rate

•              Conditions affecting lung function

 

 

 

Hyperpnea

“ It is defined as abnormally rapid or deep breathing. ”

Symptoms:

•                   Local irritation

•                   Headaches

Causes:

•              Anemia

•              Cold air exposure

 

 

Hyperventilation

“ It is rapid or deep breathing, usually caused by anxiety or panic. This over breathing, as it is sometimes called, may actually leave you feeling breathless. ”

Symptoms:

•                 Weakness, confusion

•                 Sleep disturbances

Causes:

•           Bleeding

•           Heart problem such as heart failure or heart attack.

                        

 

 

Hypoventilation

“ Hypoventilation is breathing that is too shallow or too slow to meet the needs of the body. ”

Symptoms:

•                    Swelling of the ankles

•                   Waking up from sleep unrested.

Causes:

•             Central nervous system depression

•             Neurological disease

 

Dyspnea

“ Dyspnea, or shortness of breath, is the feeling that you can't get

 enough air into your lungs. ”

Symptoms:

•                   Rapid breathing or heart rate

•                  Wheezing or stridor (noisy breathing)

Causes:

•             Cardiac disease

•             Pulmonary disease

 

 

Periodic breathing

  “ Periodic breathing is clusters of breaths separated by intervals of apnea or near-apnea. ”

Symptoms:

•                        Cheyne-Stokes respiration

•                        Apnea

Causes:

•                  Disordered breathing control

•                  Medical conditions affecting blood chemistry

 

 

Apnea

“ Apnea is when you stop breathing while asleep or have almost no airflow. ”

Symptoms:

•                              Excessive daytime sleepiness

•                        Loud snoring.

Causes:

•                     Obesity

•                 Large tonsils

 

 

 

Apnea

Apnea Time:
                       Breath holding time is known as apnea time. It is about 40 to 60 secs in normal person after a deep inspiration.

Conditions when apnea occurs:

1. Voluntary Effort (Arrest of breathing by voluntary effort is known as voluntary apnea)

2. Apnea after Hyperventilation (Apnea occurs after Hyperventilation due

 to lack of carbon dioxide. During Hyperventilation, more carbon dioxide is washed out.)

3. Deglutition Apnea (Arrest of breathing during deglutition is known as

deglutition apnea.)

4. Vagal Apnea ( Vagal apnea is an experimental apnea, which is produced

by the stimulation of vagus nerve in animals.)

5. Adrenaline Apnea ( occurs after the injection of adrenaline.

Administration of Adrenaline produces marked increase in arterial blood pressure.)

 

 

 

Apnea

Clinical Classification of Apnea:

                                                                      It is classified into three types:

1.   Obstructive Apnea:                                 
                               This occurs because of obstruction in the respiratory tract.

2.   Central Apnea:  
                          This occurs due to brain disorders, especially when the respiratory centers are affected.
                         

3.   Mixed Apnea:
                        This is a combination of central and obstructive apnea. And usually seen in premature babies.

Full-term born infants:
                                        Main reason for the mixed apnea is the abnormal control of breathing due to immature or underdeveloped brain or respiratory system