Week 3 clinical
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West Coast University *
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Medicine
Date
Feb 20, 2024
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docx
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3
Uploaded by HighnessCrown2809
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The woman's incapacity to speak and her ongoing coughing fit together as important indicators that the piece of meat may be causing a partial blockage or obstruction of her airway. A situation known as a partial blockage or obstruction of the airway occurs when airflow through
the respiratory system is restricted but not entirely stopped. Numerous factors, including aspirating a foreign substance, inflammation, edema, or airway restriction, might cause this. Breathing difficulties, such as wheezing, coughing, or a tightness in the chest, may occur in the event of a partial obstruction. The person may still be able to produce airflow, although it may be
limited or whistling in accompaniment (Kivi, 2021). A partial airway blockage should be treated as soon as possible since it may worsen and result in a total blockage, which would be medically emergency. When someone chokes, it indicates that there is something blocking their windpipe or neck that is keeping breath from passing freely. A partially obstructed airway is frequently indicated by the difficulty to speak. Ventilation of the vocal cords is necessary for speaking or producing noises. In this instance, the obstruction is probably restricting the airflow, which makes the woman's ability to speak difficult
or impossible. Coughing is the body's normal response to open the airway. The body attempts to drive air out of the throat through coughing when an object, such as a piece of meat, becomes lodged there. The reflexive coughing motion aims to loosen the blockage and allow for regular breathing. In this case, the woman's incapacity to speak and her continuous coughing strongly indicate that she is having a choking crisis. To remove the obstruction and guarantee that her airway is open, it is critical that you respond swiftly to help her and administer the proper first aid (American Lung Association, 2023).
To enable the lungs to expand and contract, breathing requires movement of the diaphragm and ribs. The diaphragm contracts and descends during inspiration, but the intercostal
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muscles contract and raise the rib cage upward and outward. A negative pressure develops inside
the lungs because of these activities, which expand the chest cavity. The ribs shift in a certain way during inhalation to provide room for the thoracic cavity to expand. The intercostal muscles that run between the ribs are mostly responsible for this. The external intercostal muscles tighten during inhalation, pushing the ribs outward and upward. The ribcage expands as a result of this movement, giving the lungs additional room inside the chest cavity to expand and take in air ("Process of breathing | Anatomy and physiology II," n.d.).
The diaphragm, a dome-shaped muscle at the base of the lungs, contracts and descends at
the same time. By doing so, the thoracic cavity's volume is further increased, producing negative pressure inside the chest that forces air into the lungs. This is the opposite process during exhale. The ribcage returns to its resting posture as the external intercostal muscles relax. Along with this relaxation, the diaphragm rises back into the chest cavity. Air is expelled from the lungs because of the thoracic cavity's decreasing volume during these movements. In conclusion, the diaphragm contracts and moves downward during inhalation, while the ribs move higher and outward, and the diaphragm relaxes and moves backward during exhalation, returning the ribs to their resting position.
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References
American Lung Association. (2023, April 4). Learn about cough
. https://www.lung.org/lung-
health-diseases/warning-signs-of-lung-disease/cough/learn-about-cough
Kivi, R. (2021, July 19). What causes an airway obstruction, and how is it treated?
Healthline. https://www.healthline.com/health/airway-obstruction#types
The process of breathing | Anatomy and physiology II
. (n.d.). Lumen Learning – Simple Book Production. https://courses.lumenlearning.com/suny-ap2/chapter/the-process-of-
breathing-no-content/
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