Respiratory Failure in Intensive Care Unit Patients with Progressive COPD: Nursing Approaches to Patient Care

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a set of heterogeneous diseases characterized by a not entirely reversible and in most cases gradual restriction of expiratory flow. Tobacco smoke is a common risk factor for the development of COPD, but the effects of coming into contact with indoor air pollutants are also significant, and the exacerbation of COPD is one of the most significant reasons for intensive care unit (ICU) admission. Registered nurses play a key role with regard to dealing with the adverse events associated with respiratory dysfunction. They track the condition of patients through their physiologic activity. The clinical treatment provided by nurses depends on the cause and type of insufficiency present in patients with respiratory failure. The aim of this study was to understand how emergency nurses could better develop their roles in ICU patients with respiratory failure due to COPD. There are many different interventions for different causes of respiratory failure. The clinical measures of respiratory dysfunction, such as changes in respiratory velocity, and occurrence of dyspnea, hypoxemia and acidosis are significant factors in the diagnosis of respiratory dysfunction and the evaluation of the risk for adverse events. Thus, nursing aims include avoiding hypoxia, reducing hypercapnia-associated acidosis and reducing complications and agitation in patients with respiratory failure due to COPD.