How To Manage Cystic Fibrosis With Chest Physical Therapy
If you have cystic fibrosis (CF) and needs respiratory care, then you should learn as much as possible about this disease. Cystic fibrosis is a genetic condition that clogs your digestive system and lungs with a sticky mucus.
There are around 1,000 new cases of CF diagnosed every year. More than 75 percent of people with CF are diagnosed with the disease by the age of two. Common symptoms include poor weight gain, recurring chest and lung infections and persistent cough. Read on to find out how to manage CF with chest physical therapy.
Use Gravity To Drain Mucous
Chest physical therapy (CPT) is one of the ways to manage the symptoms related to cystic fibrosis. It uses an airway clearance technique that drains your lungs. This therapy requires you to get in a variety of positions using gravity to remove the mucus from your lungs.
Clear Airways With Percussion
Your lung has five lobes that can get clogged with mucous. You must lie or sit in different positions when draining the mucous. This is done to make sure the part of lung to be drained is sitting as high as possible. It needs to sit high to allow the mucous to come out through your mouth. This technique is used with percussion.
Percussion is a CPT technique that requires your partner to vibrate or clap on the chest. It dislodges the mucus and sends it to your larger airways to be coughed out of your body.
How Does It Helps?
Chest physical therapy is easy to do. It can be done by friends, parents or siblings. However, they should know how to do the proper techniques to improve your breathing. When you go for doctor visits, your respiratory therapist may perform the technique to clear your airways. CPT sessions are done in short sessions. It is usually done before and after your meals to prevent you from throwing up.
Respiratory therapists tend to recommend this treatment when patients are very congested. They also can tell you how long to perform CPT, how often and what positions. A person with cystic fibrosis gets thick sticky secretions that creates a blockage in the lungs. It helps to remove this mucous to improve your breathing and to prevent infections from forming. The purpose of CPT is to clear your airways.
There is no cure for cystic fibrosis, but you can treat the symptoms. If you can control your symptoms, then it is easier to live this condition. Treatment also decreases your risk of long-term damage from infections. For more information, visit sites like http://cornermedical.com/.