Page 21 - Florida Sentinel 4-17-20

Health
We’re in the middle of a pandemic, in the tail end of the flu season and smack dab in the middle of allergy season– whew! All of that is a cause for a lot of mucus build up in your chest and lungs. One nurse ex- pertly shared what is done in a hospital when a person has a build up of mucus. In the fol- lowing paragraphs, the nurse shares how something called “Chest Physiotherapy” (CPT) helps drain the lungs and mo- bilize your airflow.
Chest physiotherapy is a group of physical techniques that improve lung function and
help you breathe better. Chest PT, or CPT expands the lungs, strengthens breathing mus- cles, and loosens and improves drainage of thick lung secre- tions. Chest PT helps treat such diseases as cystic fibrosis and COPD (chronic obstruc- tive pulmonary disease). It also keeps the lungs clear to pre- vent pneumonia after surgery and during periods of immo- bility.
Types of Chest PT
Healthcare providers often use different types of chest physiotherapy together, in-
cluding:
– Chest percussion and
vibration to help loosen lung secretions. Some patients wear a special CPT vest hooked up to a machine. The machine makes the vest vibrate at high frequency to break up the se- cretions.
Chest percussion involves striking the chest wall with cupped hands, often in combi- nation with postural drainage.
Vibration involves plac- ing the hands against the pa- tient’s chest. The hands create vibrations by quickly contract- ing and relaxing. There are
also mechanical CPT vests you can wear for high-frequency vi- bration. Another name for these vests is Airway Clearance System.
– Controlled Coughing techniques to help break up lung secretions so your care- giver can suction them out or you can cough them up. Con- trolled coughing techniques in- volve coughing gently, making short grunting noises, or mak- ing two to three sharp staccato coughs with the mouth slightly open. Controlled coughing techniques are done with pos- tural drainage and throughout the day.
– Deep breathing exer- cises to help expand the lungs and draw more air into all areas of the lung. Exercises in- volve inhaling deeply through the nose and breathing out very slowly through pursed lips.
– Incentive spirometry to help improve lung function by inhaling strongly using a spe-
cial device. You may use it after surgery to re-expand your lungs and prevent pneumonia Incentive spirometry in- volves inhaling through a tube to raise a ball in a sealed cham- ber. You will need to keep the ball raised for as long as possi- ble.
– Positioning and turning from side to side to help im- prove lung expansion and drainage of secretions. This is important for patients who are bedridden or hospitalized. Po- sitioning and turning from side to side involves elevating the head of the bed and turning every one to two hours in bed. This promotes drainage of se- cretions. Caregivers turn pa- tients who cannot turn themselves.
– Postural drainage to help drain lung secretions. This in- volves taking positions that allow gravity to help drain se- cretions. Postural drainage is often useful with chest percus- sion and coughing techniques.
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