Dyspnea is a health complication that has a link to shortness of breath, breathlessness, or oxygen hunger that occurs due to various reasons when a person is at rest or on exertion (Hamilton, 2005). The problem of dyspnea does not always mean that the individual having that air deficiency problem is not healthy, but the issue sometimes develops on a normal person when one travels at a very high altitude or when undergoing intense exercise. However, sometimes dyspnea can be a sign of one is out of shape in terms of health, and the activity causes the symptoms to improve and become visible. The problem of dyspnea is usually familiar with the people suffering from terminal illness, and if a person experiences shortness in breath for more than a month, the condition will develop to chronic dyspnea (Pratter, 1989). Acute dyspnea occurs when shortness of breath starts suddenly, and it can be due to health complication like asthma, pneumonia, anxiety, allergic reactions, and many other health issues.
Environmental pollution such as smoke, dust, chemicals, and many other triggers the problem of dyspnea making it even harder for the patients and doctors to handle the issue due to increasing levels of pollution in the environment (Zemp, 1999). People suffering from allergy also get complication due to smoke in the atmosphere leading to the development of dyspnea. Some dyspnea triggering factors are preventable for instance the smoking of tobacco can be one of the factors that influence the occurrence of dyspnea, but one can avoid smoking, therefore, reducing the chances of dyspnea development. Dyspnea has a connection to hypoxia or hypoxemia that has relation to low oxygen levels in the blood of an individual resulting in low levels of consciousness among other severe symptoms. Emergency medical treatment is essential when a person experiences shortness of breath because it is life threatening.
Delegate your assignment to our experts and they will do the rest.
Complete physical examination of the patient enables the doctors to diagnose dyspnea. However, doctors can also use chest X-rays and computed tomography images that allow the doctors to accurately diagnose dyspnea and carry out health evaluation of patient's heart, lungs and other body systems (Martindale, 2013). Treatment of dyspnea usually depends on the cause of the problem; for instance, if dyspnea is as a result of overexertion, the patient will get their breath back after they relax or stop the exercise. When the case is more severe, there is a need to supplement the patient with oxygen, and the health service provider will have to be close with the patient to monitor and enable easy breathing. When dyspnea is due to bacterial infection like pneumonia, the use of antibiotics can help in relieving the patients and enhance easy breathing. There are also other medications such as opiates, anti-anxiety, anti-inflammatory drugs and even non-steroidal those are effective in treating dyspnea.
When providing treatment to patients, one of the critical things to understand when providing social health care is to understand the socio-economic characteristics with the patients because it is essential in providing quality health care to the patient. Proper communication and show of right attitude enhance the patient behavior and openness about their health and culture that is also significant towards the achievement of providing excellent health care to different people from a different cultural background. Understanding the socio-economic characteristics of the patients is very significant because it enables the doctors or health providing personnel to recognize and acknowledge the culture of the patients when they are in their clinical practices (Medicine, 2000). Considering the culture and socio-economic characteristics of the patients is essential to the doctors because it enables them in acquiring new cultural competencies, skills, and knowledge that will enhance their ability to provide quality health care to different people from different backgrounds.
References
Hamilton, R. L. (2005). 40 ‐ year ‐ old man with headaches and dyspnea. Brain Pathology, 15(1) , 89-90.
Martindale, J. L. (2013). Diagnosing pulmonary edema: lung ultrasound versus chest radiography. European Journal of Emergency Medicine, 20(5) , 356-360.
Medicine, I. o. (2000). Crossing the Quality Chasm: A New Health System for the 21st Century. Washington, DC: National Academies Press.
Pratter, M. R. (1989). Cause and evaluation of chronic dyspnea in a pulmonary disease clinic. Archives of Internal Medicine, 149(10) , 2277-2282.
Zemp, E. E. (1999). Long-term ambient air pollution and respiratory symptoms in adults (SAPALDIA study). American journal of respiratory and critical care medicine, 159(4) , 1257-1266.
