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Epiglottis

Collapsed lung, pne...

Breathing

Definition

Breathing difficulties can be described in several different ways. You may be short of breath, unable to take a deep breath, gasping for air, or feel like you are not getting enough air.

See also: Choking

Alternative Names

Difficulty breathing - first aid; Dyspnea - first aid; Shortness of breath - first aid

Considerations

If you are having difficulty breathing, it is almost always a medical emergency (other than feeling slightly winded from normal activity like exercise or climbing a hill).

Causes

Difficulty breathing has many potential causes. Some of the most common are:

• Sudden illness or infections like pneumonia, acute bronchitis, whooping cough, croup, or epiglottitis
• Heart disease, asthma, emphysema, chronic bronchitis, or heart failure
• Heart attack
• Injury to the neck, chest wall, or lungs
• Collapsed lung, which can happen if you have emphysema or asthma, but may also happen spontaneously in young, healthy people
• High altitudes, which can be a problem even in young people
• Cigarette smoking or breathing secondhand smoke
• Pulmonary embolism, or a blood clot in the lung, which can cause very abrupt and severe difficulty breathing
• Life-threatening allergic reaction

Symptoms

The following symptoms are often associated with difficulty breathing:

• Bluish lips, fingers, and fingernails
• Chest moving in an unusual way as the person breathes (may indicate an airway or chest injury)
• Chest pain (could be a heart attack or injury; sharp chest pain could be pulmonary embolism or collapsed lung)
• Confusion, light-headedness, weakness, or sleepiness
• Cough (if the person also has phlegm/sputum, this may be pneumonia; a barking cough in a child is croup)
• Fever
• Gurgling, wheezing, or whistling sounds
• Using chest and neck muscles to breathe

Reviewer Info: Jacob L. Heller, MD, Emergency Medicine, Virginia Mason Medical Center, Seattle, Washington, Clinic. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, A.D.A.M., Inc., 10/02/2008