Pulmonary Edema

WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW:

Pulmonary edema is a build up of fluid in the lungs. The lungs are 2 hollow organs in your chest that stretch like a balloon when you breathe in, filling up with air. Pulmonary edema may be caused by a direct lung injury or a problem with your heart. Common signs and symptoms include restlessness, troubled breathing, and coughing up frothy pink-tinged sputum. A lung x-ray will let your caregiver know if you have pulmonary edema. You may need to be put in the hospital for treatment to get rid of the extra fluid.

AFTER YOU LEAVE:

Medicines:

• Keep a written list of the medicines you take, the amounts, and when and why you take them. Bring the list of your medicines or the pill bottles when you see your caregivers. Learn why you take each medicine. Ask your caregiver for information about your medicine. Do not use any medicines, over-the-counter drugs, vitamins, herbs, or food supplements without first talking to caregivers.
  
  
• Always take your medicine as directed by caregivers. Call your caregiver if you think your medicines are not helping or if you feel you are having side effects. Do not quit taking your medicines until you discuss it with your caregiver. If you are taking medicine that makes you drowsy, do not drive or use heavy equipment.

Ask your caregiver when to return for a follow-up visit. Keep all appointments. Write down any questions you may have. This way you will remember to ask these questions during your next visit.

Activity: Weigh yourself every morning after urinating but before eating breakfast. Weight gain may be a sign of extra fluid in your lungs or body. Call your caregiver if you gained more than 3 pounds in a day.

Respiratory care:

• Breathing exercises: You may feel short of breath when you are active. The following are breathing exercises that may help you breathe more easily:
  
  
  • Breathe out with pursed or puckered lips (like playing the trumpet).
    
    
  • Breathe using your diaphragm. Put one hand on your abdomen and breathe in, causing your hand to move outward or upward. Your lungs will have more room to get bigger and to take in more air.
  
  
• Special positions while sleeping: You may have trouble breathing when lying down. Sleeping in a position with your upper body raised may help you breathe easier. You can use foam wedges or elevate the head of your bed. There are many devices that you can buy to help raise your upper body while in bed. Use a device that will tilt your whole body, or bend your body at the waist. The device should not bend your body at the upper back or neck.

Wellness hints:

• Quit smoking: It is never too late to quit smoking. Smoking harms the heart, lungs, and the blood. You are more likely to have a heart attack, lung disease, and cancer if you smoke. You will help yourself and those around you by not smoking. Ask your caregiver for more information about how to stop smoking if you are having trouble quitting.
  
  
• Rest: You may feel like resting more. Slowly start to do more each day. Rest when you feel it is needed.

CONTACT A CAREGIVER IF:

• You are wheezing (a high pitched noise when breathing in or out).
  
  
• You gained more than 3 pounds in a day.
  
  
• You have a fever (increased body temperature).
  
  
• You have increased swelling in your legs, feet, or abdomen (stomach).
  
  
• You have any questions or concerns about your illness, medicine, or care.

SEEK CARE IMMEDIATELY IF:

• You feel so dizzy that you have trouble standing up.
  
  
• You have a fast or irregular heartbeat.
  
  
• You have more difficulty in breathing than usual, or cannot sleep or rest because of troubled breathing.
  
  
• You have noisy or bubbly breathing, or cough up pink frothy sputum.
  
  
• You have a severe chest pain that spreads to your arms, jaw, or back.
  
  
• Your lips and nail beds are white or blue in color.

Copyright © 2008 Thomson Healthcare Inc. All rights reserved. Information is for End User's use only and may not be sold, redistributed or otherwise used for commercial purposes.

The above information is an educational aid only. It is not intended as medical advice for individual conditions or treatments. Talk to your doctor, nurse or pharmacist before following any medical regimen to see if it is safe and effective for you.

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