Your Patient Is a 68-Year-Old Male Complaining of Difficulty Breathing

Multiple Choice

Your patient is a 68-year-old male complaining of difficulty breathing for two days. He is sitting up, conscious, alert, and oriented and appears to be in mild respiratory distress. Physical examination reveals cool, dry, pink skin; he is thin with well-defined accessory muscles, and you note diffuse wheezing to all lung fields. HR = 102, BP = 136/96, RR = 20, SaO₂ = 92%. The patient gives a 20-pack-a-year history of smoking. These findings are most typical of:

A) emphysema.
B) asthma.
C) chronic bronchitis.
D) congestive heart failure.