Shallow breathing
Encyclopedia
Shallow breathing, thoracic breathing, or chest breathing is the drawing of minimal breath into the lungs, usually by drawing air into the chest area using the intercostal muscles rather than throughout the lungs via the diaphragm. Shallow breathing can result in or be symptomatic of rapid breathing and hyperventilation
. Most people who breathe shallowly do it throughout the day and are almost always unaware of the condition.
In upper lobar breathing, clavicular breathing, or clavicle breathing air is drawn predominantly into the chest by the raising of the shoulders and collarbone (clavicles), and simultaneous contracting of the abdomen during inhalation. Maximum amount of air can be drawn this way only for short periods of time, since it requires a lot of effort. When used for prolonged time, this is the most superficial mode of shallow breathing.
s, asthma
, hyperventilation
, pneumonia
, pulmonary edema
, and shock. Anxiety
, stress
, and panic attack
s often accompany shallow breathing.
Shallow breathing, also known medically as hypopnea, may result in hypoventilation, which could cause a build up of carbon dioxide
in an individual's body, a symptom known as hypercapnia
. It's a condition related to neuro-muscular disorders (NMDs)
that include Lou Gehrig's Disease, Muscular Dystrophy
, Polio, Post-Polio Syndrome
and others. It is a serious condition if not diagnosed properly, or if it's ignored. It is often treated as a "sleep disorder
" after a sleep study performed, but "sleep studies cannot diagnose shallow breathing (JR Bach, M.D.)." Serious symptoms arise most commonly during sleep; however, because when the body sleeps, the intercostal muscles do not perform the breathing for mechanism, it's done by the diaphragm, which is often impaired in people with NMDs.
Very often, after a sleep study, when someone's been unsuccessfully using positive airway pressure (PAP) ventilation, they are prescribed nasal oxygen at night; this should never be used without clear evidence of oxygen saturation
of 94% or less; the non-judicious use of oxygen (which is a prescribed drug) may cause brain damage
.
Additionally, polio survivors with breathing conditions and others with NMDs may be given a tracheostomy (a surgical opening for breathing made in the neck). Any one with symptoms arising during sleep must seek out specialists in neuro-muscular breathing conditions.
The test to determine shallow breathing is simple and can be carried out at the bedside by a knowledgeable, licensed respiratory therapist.
The writings of Dr. Edward Anthony Oppenheimer are being used by non-profits to help those with NMD-related breathing impairment.
Hyperventilation
Hyperventilation or overbreathing is the state of breathing faster or deeper than normal, causing excessive expulsion of circulating carbon dioxide. It can result from a psychological state such as a panic attack, from a physiological condition such as metabolic acidosis, can be brought about by...
. Most people who breathe shallowly do it throughout the day and are almost always unaware of the condition.
In upper lobar breathing, clavicular breathing, or clavicle breathing air is drawn predominantly into the chest by the raising of the shoulders and collarbone (clavicles), and simultaneous contracting of the abdomen during inhalation. Maximum amount of air can be drawn this way only for short periods of time, since it requires a lot of effort. When used for prolonged time, this is the most superficial mode of shallow breathing.
Conditions
Several conditions are marked by, or symptomatic of, shallow breathing. The more common of these symptoms include: various anxiety disorderAnxiety disorder
Anxiety disorder is a blanket term covering several different forms of abnormal and pathological fear and anxiety. Conditions now considered anxiety disorders only came under the aegis of psychiatry at the end of the 19th century. Gelder, Mayou & Geddes explains that anxiety disorders are...
s, asthma
Asthma
Asthma is the common chronic inflammatory disease of the airways characterized by variable and recurring symptoms, reversible airflow obstruction, and bronchospasm. Symptoms include wheezing, coughing, chest tightness, and shortness of breath...
, hyperventilation
Hyperventilation
Hyperventilation or overbreathing is the state of breathing faster or deeper than normal, causing excessive expulsion of circulating carbon dioxide. It can result from a psychological state such as a panic attack, from a physiological condition such as metabolic acidosis, can be brought about by...
, pneumonia
Pneumonia
Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung—especially affecting the microscopic air sacs —associated with fever, chest symptoms, and a lack of air space on a chest X-ray. Pneumonia is typically caused by an infection but there are a number of other causes...
, pulmonary edema
Pulmonary edema
Pulmonary edema , or oedema , is fluid accumulation in the air spaces and parenchyma of the lungs. It leads to impaired gas exchange and may cause respiratory failure...
, and shock. Anxiety
Anxiety
Anxiety is a psychological and physiological state characterized by somatic, emotional, cognitive, and behavioral components. The root meaning of the word anxiety is 'to vex or trouble'; in either presence or absence of psychological stress, anxiety can create feelings of fear, worry, uneasiness,...
, stress
Stress (medicine)
Stress is a term in psychology and biology, borrowed from physics and engineering and first used in the biological context in the 1930s, which has in more recent decades become commonly used in popular parlance...
, and panic attack
Panic attack
Panic attacks are periods of intense fear or apprehension that are of sudden onset and of relatively brief duration. Panic attacks usually begin abruptly, reach a peak within 10 minutes, and subside over the next several hours...
s often accompany shallow breathing.
Shallow breathing, also known medically as hypopnea, may result in hypoventilation, which could cause a build up of carbon dioxide
Carbon dioxide
Carbon dioxide is a naturally occurring chemical compound composed of two oxygen atoms covalently bonded to a single carbon atom...
in an individual's body, a symptom known as hypercapnia
Hypercapnia
Hypercapnia or hypercapnea , also known as hypercarbia, is a condition where there is too much carbon dioxide in the blood...
. It's a condition related to neuro-muscular disorders (NMDs)
Neuromuscular disease
Neuromuscular disease is a very broad term that encompasses many diseases and ailments that either directly, via intrinsic muscle pathology, or indirectly, via nerve pathology, impair the functioning of the muscles....
that include Lou Gehrig's Disease, Muscular Dystrophy
Muscular dystrophy
Muscular dystrophy is a group of muscle diseases that weaken the musculoskeletal system and hamper locomotion. Muscular dystrophies are characterized by progressive skeletal muscle weakness, defects in muscle proteins, and the death of muscle cells and tissue.In the 1860s, descriptions of boys who...
, Polio, Post-Polio Syndrome
Post-polio syndrome
Post-polio syndrome is a condition that affects approximately 25–50% of people who have previously contracted poliomyelitis—a viral infection of the nervous system—after the initial infection. Typically the symptoms appear 15–30 years after recovery from the original paralytic attack, at an age of...
and others. It is a serious condition if not diagnosed properly, or if it's ignored. It is often treated as a "sleep disorder
Sleep disorder
A sleep disorder, or somnipathy, is a medical disorder of the sleep patterns of a person or animal. Some sleep disorders are serious enough to interfere with normal physical, mental and emotional functioning...
" after a sleep study performed, but "sleep studies cannot diagnose shallow breathing (JR Bach, M.D.)." Serious symptoms arise most commonly during sleep; however, because when the body sleeps, the intercostal muscles do not perform the breathing for mechanism, it's done by the diaphragm, which is often impaired in people with NMDs.
Very often, after a sleep study, when someone's been unsuccessfully using positive airway pressure (PAP) ventilation, they are prescribed nasal oxygen at night; this should never be used without clear evidence of oxygen saturation
Oxygen saturation
Oxygen saturation or dissolved oxygen is a relative measure of the amount of oxygen that is dissolved or carried in a given medium. It can be measured with a dissolved oxygen probe such as an oxygen sensor or an optode in liquid media, usually water.It has particular significance in medicine and...
of 94% or less; the non-judicious use of oxygen (which is a prescribed drug) may cause brain damage
Brain damage
"Brain damage" or "brain injury" is the destruction or degeneration of brain cells. Brain injuries occur due to a wide range of internal and external factors...
.
Additionally, polio survivors with breathing conditions and others with NMDs may be given a tracheostomy (a surgical opening for breathing made in the neck). Any one with symptoms arising during sleep must seek out specialists in neuro-muscular breathing conditions.
The test to determine shallow breathing is simple and can be carried out at the bedside by a knowledgeable, licensed respiratory therapist.
The writings of Dr. Edward Anthony Oppenheimer are being used by non-profits to help those with NMD-related breathing impairment.
Further reading
- Bach, J.R. (1999). Guide to the evaluation and management of neuromuscular disease. Philadelphia, PA: Hanley & Belfus.
- Gay, PC., & Edmonds, L.C. (1995). Severe hypercapnia after low-flow oxygen therapy in patients with neuromuscular disease and diaphragmatic dysfunction. Mayo Clinic Proceedings, 70(4), 327-330.
- Hsu, A., & Staats, B. (1998). "Postpolio" sequelae and sleep-related disordered breathing. Mayo Clinic Proceedings, 73, 216-224.
- Krachman, S., & Criner, G.J. (1998). Hypoventilation syndromes. Clinics in Chest Medicine, 19(l),139-155.