The assessment finding that the nurse will identify in a patient with a barrel chest is the chest appears as if it's held in continuous inspiration.
The ribs will appear to be horizontal in relation to the spine and the anteroposterior diameter is equal to the transverse diameter.
The disease that is associated with a barrel chest is COPD or other lung disease.
A barrel chest is a symptom of a lung disease such as COPD, Emphysema or chronic bronchitis.
The type of patient that would have a barrel chest is a patient with COPD or chronic bronchitis or emphysema.
The lung disease that causes barrel chest is COPD which is a respiratory disease that includes chronic bronchitis and emphysema and is a serious health condition that gets worse over time.
The most common cause of a barrel chest is COPD and osteoarthritis.
Barrel chests in children are usually linked to and caused by chronic asthma or cystic fibrosis.
A barrel chest indicates that the person has either CF, osteoarthritis, emphysema or COPD.
A barrel chest results from the lungs filling with air which is then unable to fully breathe out the air.
This results in the chest having a barrel shape.
Treatments for barrel chests include focusing on managing symptoms of the underlying condition and limiting the extent of any lung damage.
Barrel chest generally refers to a broad, deep chest found on a person.
A barrel chested person will usually have a naturally large ribcage, very round (i.e., vertically cylindrical) torso, large lung capacity, and can potentially have great upper body strength.
Other rare genetic conditions can affect the rib cage and bones in the back, triggering a barrel chest.
These inherited conditions include: pectus carinatum.
Barrel chest can also relate to a rounding in the shape of the rib cage as some people age.
The ribs may angle outward at the joints where they attach to the spine and become fixed in their most expanded position.
Barrel chest often results from COPD, a respiratory disease that includes emphysema and chronic bronchitis.
It is a serious condition that gets worse over time.
After you've had COPD awhile, you may develop a bulging in your chest.
The chest takes on a barrel-like appearance called a “barrel chest.”
A barrel chest forms because your lungs are chronically overfilled with air and can't deflate normally.
This causes your rib cage to be partially expanded at all times.
Also people with pectus carinatum tend to have a 'barrel chested' shape which may alter the mechanics of normal chest wall movement and may explain why some people experience breathlessness on exertion, further research is needed.