You are called to attend to an ER patient complaining of shortness of breath and severe dyspnea on exertion. Patient history is significant for a 30-year-pack smoking history, dry nonproductive cough, and occasional pedal edema. CXR findings are not remarkable except for mild cardiomegaly. You want to rule out ILD versus obstructive lung disease. Results for pulmonary function testing are shown below. These results are consistent with:

Question

You are called to attend to an ER patient complaining of shortness of breath and severe dyspnea on exertion. Patient history is significant for a 30-year-pack smoking history, dry nonproductive cough, and occasional pedal edema. CXR findings are not remarkable except for mild cardiomegaly. You want to rule out ILD versus obstructive lung disease. Results for pulmonary function testing are shown below.  These results are consistent with:

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The DLCO indicates a loss of alveolar capillary surface area and strongly suggests that lung destruction is occurring at the level of the alveolar-capillary membrane.

You Are Called to Attend to an ER Patient Complaining