Why there is shortness of breath when walking - reasons, treatment

click fraud protection

Shortness of breath is an unusual feeling of breathing or the need for more intense breathing. Dyspnoea can be defined as respiratory discomfort, shortness of breath, uncomfortable or unpleasant sensation of one's own breathing, or awareness of difficulty breathing.

Dyspnea as a sign of respiratory failure appears in the case of the inability of the human respiratory system to ensure the body's needs for gas exchange. This situation occurs when the body's need for oxygen is increased or oxygen delivery to tissues is impaired( with a number of cardiovascular and bronchopulmonary diseases).

Causes of shortness of breath when walking

The most common causes of shortness in walking are pathologies in the work of the heart, lung and bronchial diseases, throat and disturbance of the circulatory system. It is worth noting that even with insignificant deviations a stranger who is quite observant is easy to identify and diagnose dyspnea. Dyspnoea manifests itself as shortness of breath, pain in the throat and vessels, pain in the heart and interruptions in his work, and in addition, sometimes a person may have blood from the throat or nose.

There are several groups of causes of that can cause dyspnea:

1. Exercise;
2. Vegeto-vascular dystonia;
3. Neuroses, panic attacks, fears and anxieties;
4. Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease;
5. Anemia;
6. Obesity;
7. Lung diseases;
8. Ischemic heart disease;
9. Congestive heart failure;
10. Cardiac asthma, or paroxysmal nocturnal dyspnea;
11. Thromboembolism of the pulmonary artery( clogged by its clots).

The diseases and conditions listed above are the most frequent. If you have shortness of breath, it is best to consult a doctor to determine the specific cause of feeling short of air.

It is very important to consult a specialist immediately or call an ambulance team if you suddenly have shortness of breath, especially if it is accompanied by pain in the chest, nausea, vomiting or fever. These signs can talk about a very serious illness. In any situation, the doctor will be able to determine an individual survey plan to determine the cause.

Causes of pulmonary dyspnea

Pulmonary dyspnea is one that is caused by diseases and pathologies of the lungs.

1. The expiratory dyspnea is the most common form, which is determined by the difficulty in exhaling and arises when the lumen in the bronchi narrows due to their edema, spasm or blockage by sputum. To cope with this problem in the process of breathing, it is necessary to strengthen the work of the respiratory muscles, but this is not enough, and the exhalation cycle is difficult.
2. Inspiratory dyspnea .The patient has difficulty breathing. This is due to the accumulation of fluid in the chest in case of tumors, edema of the larynx, fibrosis, pleurisy and others. A person can not speak without multiple breaths. The appearance of such dyspnea is possible even with little physical exertion. The inhalation is accompanied by a whistling sound.

Shortness of breath for heart failure

There are also shortness of breath in heart failure. Its appearance is directly affected by the thinning of the walls of the vessels, the defects of the septum, heart failure, stenosis. Also, one of the causes of cardiac dyspnea is heart defects. As a result, there is oxygen starvation, it is also the cause of dyspnea when walking. Signs of this shortness of breath are orthopnea and polypnoea.

1. Polypnoe .The condition is caused by an excessive inflow of blood to the heart when the patient is in a horizontal position. This may be due to heart failure. Frequent and deep breathing is noted, sometimes before hyperventilation.
2. Orthopnea is a syndrome of cardiac dyspnea that forces a person to be in an upright position all the time, as this facilitates his condition. Orthopnea is associated with left ventricular and left atrial insufficiency.

Central dyspnea

This type of dyspnea occurs in pathologies of the central nervous system, with neuroses, as well as under the influence of neurotropic substances. Central dyspnea is not a consequence of pathology, it is the cause itself. It manifests itself in different ways: hypernoea, oligopnea, arrhythmia.

Hematogenous dyspnea

Occurs very rarely, and is associated with the toxic effect of degradation products on metabolism. It is characterized by very frequent and deep breathing. The causes are: anemia, endocrine disorders and kidney or liver failure.

Symptoms of

The main symptoms of dyspnea:

• breathing quickens;
• the pulse rises;
• is suffocated;
• breathing becomes noisy;
• the depth of inspiration and exhalation varies.

Dyspnoea begins in the following cases:

• during walking - this is due to cardiac activity;
• climbing the stairs - speaks about infection in the lungs, colds;
• leaving on a frost - the reason in an allergy on a cold because of a pathology of lungs;
• during rest at night - stagnant process of the heart muscle;
• in sex - the reasons are possible any, for example anemia, iron deficiency in the blood.

Dyspnoea on walking has certain causes, and treatment with folk remedies is far from always able to cope with a source of shortness of breath. Therefore, do not engage in self-medication at home, if you have this symptom.

How to treat shortness of breath while walking?

Before you begin to fight with shortness of breath, you should not go to the pharmacy and buy up pills, which my friend advised. First of all you need :

1. To give up a bad habit in the form of tobacco smoking, if you smoke;
2. Reduce weight if it is available in excess;
3. Adjust blood pressure, if present in abnormal numbers.

To determine the cause of respiratory failure, will also need to undergo a test that includes :

1. Biochemical blood test;
2. R-chest graph;
3. heart ultrasound;
4. ECG;
5. Analysis of the function of external respiration.

The most important method of controlling shortness of breath is the treatment of a disease that caused dyspnoea. As soon as the doctor finds out the reason, the plan of effective treatment will be determined immediately.

For example, with ischemic heart disease and myocardial infarction - treatment with tablets. With COPD and bronchial asthma - regular treatment with inhalers. Since the main cause of shortness of breath in many cases is hypoxia and hypoxemia( low oxygen content in the body), one of the effective ways to reduce dyspnea is oxygen therapy.

Currently, devices are developed - oxygen concentrators, which allow you to "extract" oxygen from the air around the clock. The inhalation of oxygen in an increased concentration can eliminate hypoxia and hypoxemia.

To which doctor to consult with dyspnea

When the diagnosis of a person is still unknown, it is best to make an appointment with a therapist. After examination, the doctor will be able to establish a presumptive diagnosis, if necessary, refer the patient to a specialized specialist.

If dyspnoea is associated with lung pathology - it is necessary to consult a pulmonologist, with heart disease - with a cardiologist. Anemia is treated by a hematologist, pathology of the nervous system - a neurologist, diseases of the endocrine glands - an endocrinologist, psychiatric disorders accompanied by shortness of breath - a psychiatrist.