Anyone who wants to understand what a pulmonologist is treating, should know the main specialization of this doctor - a disease of the human respiratory system, and even more precisely - diseases of the lower respiratory tract. The need to allocate such a narrow specialization arose because of the wide prevalence of diseases of this profile.
Pulmonologist - who is this and what heals?
Breathing is the most important process that provides oxygen to the body. A three-minute stop of breathing due to spasm, sinking of the lung or injury without the urgent help of doctors is lethal. Even a decrease in the volume of incoming oxygen due to the inflammatory process or infection can cause much harm to the body. If there are problems with breathing, a person should consult a pulmonologist.
The answer to the question about what kind of doctor is a pulmonologist: this is a narrow specialist who is well versed in the pathological processes taking place in the lower respiratory tract. On the basis of the objective information obtained and the results of the research, the pulmonary physician should prescribe a treatment that takes into account the characteristics of the patient's organism and the factors that provoked the disease:
- allergy;
- hereditary pathology;
- smoking;
- cold;
- trauma of the chest;
- work in harmful production;
- infection - viruses, bacteria, fungi, parasites.
Pulmonologist - who is this?
The competencies of the pulmonologist extend to the structure of the respiratory organs, the features of their functioning and the causes of the development of pathologies. The pulmonologist is a specialist in diseases:
- bronchi;
- light;
- pleural cavity;
- trachea;
- larynx (in the event that inflammation threatens the lower parts of the respiratory system).
What treats the doctor pulmonologist?
Pulmonology is one of the most important directions in medicine, a doctor pulmonologist should be in every hospital, because of the bad ecology, growth in the number of allergies, lower immunity and other negative factors, the number of patients with respiratory diseases is constantly increasing. To the question that the pulmonologist treats children and adults, the answers will be very different, therefore it is advisable for a specialist to choose a patient of appropriate age.
To patients of children's age the doctor the pulmonologist, who it and that he treats, is seldom known. Even with severe colds, pediatricians and otolaryngologists are quite successful. Help pulmonologist is required if the common cold is threatened with complications or overflow to the chronic stage with the addition of diseases of the lower respiratory tract. If there is a specialist in a pediatric hospital, his consultation is necessary when diagnosing a child:
- bronchial asthma;
- bronchitis - acute or chronic;
- pneumonia ;
- prolonged or chronic cough;
- histiocidosis X - a disease in which eosinophils and pathological immune cells actively multiply in the lungs and bones;
- cystic fibrosis - a systemic disease of a hereditary nature, accompanied by numerous pathogenic processes, including in the lungs.
In adults, the range of problems that are addressed to a pulmonologist is much wider. This and the already mentioned bronchial asthma, pneumonia, bronchitis, as well as other, often more complex and dangerous diseases, developing with age or due to an incorrect lifestyle, hazardous factors in production. This is not a complete list of what the adult pulmonologist is treating:
- pleurisy - inflammation of pleural sheets or accumulation of exudate in the pleural cavity;
- embolia (pulmonary) - blockage of the pulmonary artery (thrombus, air bubble, tumor cells, fat particles, foreign objects);
- benign tumor (hamartoma) - corresponds to lung tissue, but differs in the location of blood vessels and other tissues;
- idiopathic pulmonary hemosiderosis - deposition of haemosiderin pigment in the lungs;
- hemothorax - accumulation of blood in the pleural cavity;
- pneumothorax - accumulation of gases in the pleural cavity;
- lung infarction - occurs against a background of thrombosis or pulmonary embolism;
- pulmonary hypertension - increased vascular resistance in the lungs;
- pulmonary fibrosis - proliferation of connective tissue in the lungs;
- sarcoidosis - formation of granulomas in the lungs;
- apnea - cessation of breathing at night;
- chronic obstructive pulmonary disease - progressive limitation of airway in the airways;
- lung cancer - malignant formation in the lungs;
- tuberculosis is a serious infectious disease, in which foci of inflammation form in the lung.
When should I go to a pulmonologist?
Severity of diseases associated with the respiratory system, makes everyone know when to go to a pulmonologist. Often, this therapist is guided by a therapist, determining for some specific symptoms pulmonary pathology. The person himself can suspect a pulmonary disease when:
- prolonged cough, dry or with sputum discharge;
- a cough with bloody separation or with a nonspecific color of sputum;
- shortness of breath during physical exertion or at rest;
- difficulty breathing or exhaling;
- pain in the chest during breathing.
How is the procedure performed by a pulmonologist?
The patient, who goes to the reception for the first time, often wants to know how the examination is taking place at a pulmonologist. Here's what the lung specialist checks:
- First, the doctor collects an anamnesis and conducts visual examination of the chest, assessing its size, symmetry and other parameters.
- Next, the pulmonologist palpates the ribs and soft tissues, rattles the lungs to detect tissue seals.
- Then he listens to the lungs, revealing wheezing and uncharacteristic sounds for a healthy body.
What and how does the lung specialist check?
Since the information received from the patient and the examination does not always give an objective picture of the disease, the patient is assigned other studies. What does the pulmonologist check after the examinations:
- Laboratory tests - general blood and urine tests, antibody tests, oncomarkers, sputum examinations.
- The results of spirometry and spirography, which will help determine the amount of damaged lung tissue that is turned off from the respiration process.
- The results of MRI, ultrasound, echocardiography, radiography, computed tomography and other techniques.
Pulmonologist's advice
Since very often serious pulmonary diseases result in complications of banal colds or SARS , the most persistent recommendations of a pulmonologist:
- Strengthen immunity.
- Dress appropriately for the season.
- Observe the rules of hygiene.
- Minimize other risks of getting sick.
- If the disease could not be avoided - do not engage in self-medication, resort to the help of a doctor.
Diseases of the respiratory system and their prevention
Severe respiratory diseases lead to disability or death, therefore, in order to maintain health, it is important to take preventive measures. To begin with, eliminate harmful habits that reduce the body's resistance to infections, and such harmful attachments, like smoking, can lead to the development of lung cancer.