Introduction Disorders of the soft tissue and bony structures of the chest wall generally cause restrictive dysfunction by limiting motion or causing disordered movement of the chest wall. Kyphoscoliosis and…
Introduction Community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) is a frequent infectious respiratory disease. Although many patients with CAP can be treated as outpatients, the mortality of CAP in those who do require hospitalization…
Introduction Of the approximately 1 million cases of hospitalized pneumonia each year in the United States, around 60,000 will develop frank empyema. A further 25,000 are estimated to develop pleural…
Introduction The one generalization about venous thromboembolism (VTE) that is free from controversy is that many aspects of this disorder remain controversial. There are multiple reasons why VTE continues to…
Introduction The pleural space is bounded by two membranes, the visceral pleura covering the lung and the parietal pleura covering the chest wall and diaphragm. Into this space, normal liquid…
Introduction Carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) is produced during aerobic cellular respiration and is a “waste product” produced by all aerobic life forms. Arterial CO 2 tension (arterial P co…
Introduction Respiratory failure exists when the respiratory system cannot maintain gas exchange, causing dysfunction in other organs or threatening life. Such impairment primarily affects oxygenation, manifested by hypoxemia, or affects…
Thoracic Trauma Introduction Among trauma victims, thoracic trauma is the second most common cause of death in the field and the third most common cause of death in patients who…
Introduction Cystic fibrosis (CF) is a multisystem genetic disease that affects children and young adults. CF is the most common monogenetic disease in Caucasian populations. The disease is caused by…
Introduction Pulmonary alveolar proteinosis (PAP) is a rare syndrome characterized by abnormal alveolar surfactant accumulation and hypoxemic respiratory insufficiency. It arises in a heterogeneous group of mechanistically distinct diseases usefully…
