The medical term for a collapsed lung is atelectasis. Part or all of your lung can collapse due a blockage in the lung cavity that prohibits the lung from expanding as you inhale. Your lung can also collapse if there is a hole in the lung that...
Collapsed lung is a collective term used to describe two separate conditions, pneumothorax and atelectasis, that trigger partial or total deflation of your lung's oxygen-carrying structures. If you have an atelectasis, deflation occurs in the tiny...
When a lung deflates (collapses), sometimes it will stay in that state, leading to a condition known as atelectasis. As the Merck Manual of Diseases notes, atelectasis can cause shortness of breath. The severity of the trouble breathing depends on...
A collapsed lung is a potentially fatal medical condition that causes breathing difficulties, chest pain, a rapid heart rate and skin discoloration. This condition occurs when pressure accumulates within the thin protective tissue that covers the...
Heart bypass surgery or coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) is commonly known as open-heart surgery. Typically, people with coronary artery disease in which vessels of the heart are blocked with hard build-up, called plaque, require heart bypass...
The lungs are two organs within the chest that take in oxygen from the air, pass it into the bloodstream and release carbon dioxide out of the body. Injury to the chest, marijuana use and hiking at high altitudes can cause a collapsed lung in...
Oxygen therapy is used in both acute and chronic conditions such as asthma exacerbation, pneumonia, trauma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder. When used appropriately, oxygen can help relieve symptoms and even save lives. However, oxygen...
A pneumothorax can be a serious lung condition that causes difficulty with breathing, sharp chest pain and chest tightness. A pneumothorax occurs when air escapes from the lungs and fills the pleural space, which is the area between the lungs and...
The double-layer membrane surrounding the lungs is called the pleura, and also covers the inner chest wall. It keeps the chest cavity airtight, however, if air enters the space between the two layers of the pleura, a collapsed lung or pneumothorax...
Lung cancer is the most common cancer worldwide. It is also the most common cause of cancer death in the United States. As discussed in the book "Clinical Oncology," surgery is one of the main treatment options for lung cancer. There are three...
Lung cancer, an aggressive disease that either begins in the lungs or spreads to the lungs, occurs most often in people between the ages of 45 and 70. It is the leading cause of cancer in Americans, according to The Merck Manuals Online Medical...
The normal function of lung cells is to absorb oxygen from the air and expel carbon dioxide from the blood, a process called respiration. When lung cancer develops, abnormal tumor cells grow out of control and begin to interfere with this vital...
Coronary artery bypass grafting is an open-heart surgical procedure by which a healthy vein or artery from the body is connected to a blocked artery in the heart, bypassing the blocked portion and facilitating improved blood flow to heart muscle....
An arterial blood gas, or ABG, is a lab test that takes blood from an artery and measures how much oxygen and carbon dioxide is in the bloodstream. There are three main reasons for the results of the test to show high levels of carbon dioxide. In...
Menopur, or menotropins, is a prescription medication that is a gonadotropin and ovulation stimulator. It's used in conjunction with hCG in infertile women to induce ovulation and pregnancy. It is also used for stimulating multiple follicle...
Trasylol (aprotinin) is a medication used to prevent blood loss during heart surgery. According to Drugs.com, Trasylol belongs to the category of medicines called protease inhibitors, and it decreases the chances of your body developing an...
Atelectasis, which is a partial or total collapse of the lung, is one of the many post-operative complications of various types of surgery. Operations requiring anesthesia, orthopedic surgery performed in high-altitude locations and surgery that...
The Centers for Disease Control describes asthma as a chronic condition that obstructs air passages within the lungs. Air passage inflammation creates sensitivity to smoke, pollen and other irritants. The Centers for Disease Control reports that...
Nitric oxide is a gas that the body creates naturally. Nitric oxide is composed of one atom of nitrogen bonded to one atom of oxygen, with the chemical formula NO. This molecule contains an unpaired electron, making it a free radical. Its role...
The Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America describes asthma as a process whereby the airways become narrowed. Narrowing results from chronic inflammation and increased sensitivity of tubes in the lungs called bronchioles. According to the...
No matter how technically skilled a surgeon is, there is always a risk of complications from surgery. Complications cost the health care system millions of dollars and can cost the patient grief, pain and anguish. Though most surgeries will yield...
Crackles in the lungs, most often described as a “popping” sound, originate in the airway. The crackling noise comes from a blocked airway that opens suddenly, which causes the sound to reverberate through the airway. Crackles are...
Anesthesia and the stress of surgery can cause complications that are sometimes life-threatening. Patients are monitored during and after surgery for early signs of complications related to immobility or to the procedure. Signs of shortness of...
Mucus plug, the excessive secretion of slippery substance produced by the cells lining the airways of the lungs, is a result of various respiratory conditions that exhibit mucus hypersecretion. These include asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary...
Medical conditions such as asthma, bronchitis, emphysema and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) can all cause your lungs' airways to become inflamed and make it difficult for you to breathe. Damage to your lungs can be temporary, in...
Lung cancer refers to a type of cancer that begins in the lungs, according to the Mayo Clinic. If you have lung cancer, you may experience a chronic cough, unexplained weight loss or wheezing. According to the Merck Manual, lung cancer is the...
Any patient undergoing a surgical procedure is at risk for developing complications afterward, including bleeding, infection, breathing problems and developing blood clots in the legs that can travel to the lungs. The likelihood of developing...
The National Heart Lung and Blood Institute states that there are many health conditions associated with your lungs, including asbestosis, asthma, atelectasis, bronchitis, cystic fibrosis, emphysema, pneumonia and pulmonary fibrosis. Lung diseases...
Surgery of the spine is performed for a wide variety of reasons, such as correcting bony alignments, tumor removal, disc resection and spinal cord decompression. All surgical procedures have risks involved with surgery in general, such as...
