Focused Assessment of the Patient with Acute Breathlessness
- Known cardiac or respiratory disease?
- Associated chest pain (pleuritic or non-pleuritic)?)
- Associated cough, with purulent sputum or haemoptysis?
- Change in sputum volume or purulence if chronic productive cough?
- Risk factors for venous thromboembolism (Table 56.1)?)
- Usual exercise capacity and any recent change?
- Temperature, heart rate, blood pressure, jugular venous pressure, respiratory rate.
- Stridor or wheeze?
- Signs of heart failure?
- Focal lung crackles.
- Peak expiratory flow rate, related to predicted normal.
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