MECHANISMS OF DISEASE - PATHOPHYSIOLOGY OF DYSPNEA

Patients with cardiopulmonary disease often have respiratory distress, which physicians refer to as dyspnea. Dyspnea is responsible for substantial disability and for millions of patient visits each year. Although dyspnea has been defined in several ways,1–4 we define it as “an uncomfortable sensation of breathing.” This review will focus on the mechanisms of dyspnea, because a greater understanding of those mechanisms may lead to better therapy for this often troubling symptom. Problems in the Study of Dyspnea Dyspnea differs from other sensations in that the neural pathways underlying it are not well understood. For example, free nerve endings transmit. © 1995, Massachusetts Medical Society. All rights reserved.