The Effect of Breathing Exercise and Stretching for Decrease Breathing Difficulties in Bilateral Pneumothorax

Abstract

The purpose of this case study is to determine the effectiveness of two exercises, namely, breathing exercise and stretching which are the modalities of physiotherapy in dealing with cardiorespiratory cases. Pneumothorax is caused by the presence of air or gas in the pleural space. This causes the lungs to collapse partially or totally, and decrease the degree of oxygenation and ventilation in the lungs. Pneumothorax is classified into primary spontaneous pneumothorax (PSP) and secondary spontaneous pneumothorax (CNS). PSP occurs in healthy people without underlying lung disease. CNS is caused by rupture of damaged lung tissue and occurs in patients who have been diagnosed with a previous lung disease, mycobacterial tuberculosis being the most common cause of CNS. Besides the two types of pneumothorax there are also traumatic pneumothorax and tension pneumothorax. Chest tube drainage or also called thoracostomy tube is usually used for people with pneumothorax to drain fluid, blood, or air from the pleural cavity. The combination of exercises in the form of deep breathing exercise and active assisted stretching is expected to reduce tightness so that the patient is able to move optimally. The reduction in patient tightness can be measured using the dyspnea severity scale parameter. Clinical questions arise, "Can breathing exercise and stretching have a better effect on reducing congestion in bilateral pneumothorax patients?" To answer this question, evidence was traced to 2 data bases, Pubmed and Science Direct. Keywords used are Deep breathing AND dyspnea, Respiratory muscle stretching AND dyspnea, and Deep breathing OR Breathing exercise AND oxygen saturation AND Heart rate with full text article inclusion criteria and publications from 2015 - 2020.

In the search found 5 articles that meet the inclusion criteria. Then the search phase continued with reading the entire article and found articles that corresponded to 2 articles in Pubmed and 2 articles in Science Direct.