Lung Atelectasis: Causes, Symptoms and Treatment

Atelectasis is a condition of the lung that decreases the deep breathing capability of a person. The entire lung, or a part of it, becomes airless and collapses. Atelectasis is not life threatening to adults, because in general only a small part of the lung is affected by it. But in case of children below 10 years of age, the condition may be critical as their bronchial tubes are already very narrow. Atelectasis involving a large part of the lung may even result in lung damage.

Causes
The basic reason for atelectasis is the blockage of air passages to a certain part of the lung. This can happen because of a variety of reasons. The most common reason is a plug of mucus or may be some foreign body that has obstructed the airway passage. Tumors and swollen lymph nodes may also be the reason for blocking the airway passage externally. Another reason of atelectasis is the compression of the airway passage. Asthma is thus, one primary cause of lung atelectasis. Compression of the airway passage may also be caused because of a small chest wall or some neuromuscular disease that the patient is already suffering from.

People who undergo surgeries are generally among the common victims of this lung condition. The reason is the anesthesia or the sedative that has been administered to the patient before the operation. Anesthesia compresses the lung tissues of the patient and the patient remains susceptible to this condition even after the operation. If a patient is suffering from some sort of heart problem, that has caused the heart to enlarge, then the left lower lobe of the bronchus may get compressed, thus causing atelectasis. Atelectasis may even result from neurological disorders and chest deformities. People who have met with accidents, are often diagnosed to be suffering from atelectasis. This may be because of the lung being punctured during the accident. The most common people who are hit by this lung disorder are those who smoke and those who are suffering from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Symptoms
If atelectasis involves just a small number of alveoli, then the symptoms may not even be detectable, but if it grows rapidly then it may cause an acute condition of 'shortage of breath'. The level of oxygen saturation in people suffering from this disorder is also less. The loss of deep breathing also causes the heart beat rate to increase. If atelectasis has been caused because of some other disorder that the patient is suffering from, then the symptoms will be similar to those of the existing ailment. It is very likely that a patient suffering from this condition will lose his energy and stamina. Cough, fever and pleural effusion are some other significant symptoms of a patient suffering from atelectasis. A very unlikely symptom, in cases of people suffering from an acute condition of atelectasis, is a bluish skin. This happens because of reduced oxygen level in the skin. If atelectasis is not treated and continues for a prolonged time then it may result in lung infection.

Treatment
The first step to the treatment of atelectasis is diagnosing the problem. It is generally done through a chest X-ray. To confirm the diagnosis, the X-Ray may be followed by a bronchoscopy. The common method of treatment consists of suctioning the airway passage by a health care practitioner. If atelectasis has been caused because of a tumor, then the tumor needs to be surgically removed. In certain cases, radiation therapy, chemotherapy and laser therapy may also be used to remove the tumor. If atelectasis has been caused because of an infection in the wind pipe, then an artificial wind pipe, regulated by a mechanical ventilator may be inserted. The other common methods of treatments are deep breathing exercises and postural drainage. In the process of postural drainage, the patient is made to cough out the obstruction. Another simple but yet effective method of treatment is positioning the patient on the unaffected side of the lung so that the affected side can again re-expand.

Atelectasis cannot be exactly termed as a disease. It can rather be classified in the category of lung conditions that can give rise to other serious lung problems. No doubt, if all the alveolis in the lung have been effected, then it can itself cause a very severe problem. Also, if a small part of the lung is affected by atelectasis and it continues to remain untreated, then the alveolis may collapse, which would again result in a serious lung infection. Bacterial infection is common in any person suffering from atelectasis and hence anti-bacterial drugs are prescribed in almost all cases.