Question

Valerie Tallchief has emphysema and becomes very short of breath whenever she tries to perform a task. Choose the most appropriate nursing diagnosis from the NANDA list in the back of your textbook.

Answer 1

Possible diagnosis in case of Valerie Tallchief are listed below:

1. Ineffective Breathing pattern.

2. Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Emphysema is a medical condition that leads to the damage of air sacs due to smoking. Some of the symptoms include cough, breathing trouble.

Few of the treatment options are surgery, medication of COPD, in major cases lung transplant.

Some of the inherited form of emphysema is called Alpha-1 Antitrypsin deficiency which is associated with mutation in the gene SERPINA1. It is an autosomal recessive disorder. The age of onset for this disorder is 35 to 45 years leading to cirrhosis and liver failure in major cases.