Question

A resident has emphysema. You expect the following signs and symptoms except:

a) Shortness of breath
b) Chronic cough
c) Wheezing
d) High fever

Answer 1

Patients with emphysema typically experience shortness of breath, chronic cough, and wheezing but not high fever, which is more common in infections like pneumonia.

Step-by-step explanation:

In the case of a patient with emphysema, you would expect to see symptoms such as shortness of breath, a chronic cough, and wheezing. Emphysema is a type of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), caused primarily by smoking, and is characterized by damage to the alveoli in the lungs, leading to difficulty in exhaling air and obstructed gas exchange. While shortness of breath, chronic cough, and wheezing are common symptoms, a high fever is not typically associated with emphysema. Instead, high fever is more commonly linked to infections such as pneumonia, where alveoli become inflamed and fill with fluid, impairing the gas exchange process and often triggering a fever in the body's attempt to fight the infection.