ABSTRACT
Consider the following, some of which were covered in the preceding section on chest pain: • Acute asthma • Community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) • Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) • Pneumothorax • Pulmonary embolus (see p. 51) • Pulmonary oedema • Acute upper airway obstruction – see page 13 • Metabolic acidosis, such as diabetic ketoacidosis or lactic acidosis - see page 79 • Respiratory muscle weakness from myasthenia gravis or Guillain-Barré syn-
drome • Miscellaneous including anaemia, anaphylaxis, interstitial lung disease,
obesity, poisoning such as salicylate or carbon monoxide, pain and anxiety
ACUTE ASTHMA
DIAGNOSIS
1 Ascertain the precipitating factors in the present attack, its duration, additional treatment given particularly steroids and the response to treatment.
