Mr. Joseph Hope is a 56-year-old self-employed communications consultant. He has smoked a pack/day for 30+ years. He has a 10-year history of asthma/chronic bronchitis, arthritis of the knees and congestive heart failure. He is 6' tall and weighs 350 lbs. He routinely takes a diuretic (furosemide) and his pulmonary medications. The following laboratory values are obtained:
Diagnosis:
COPD exacerbation secondary to bronchitis, right CHF, degenerative osteoarthritis, duodenal ulcer
Presenting signs and symptoms:
Cough productive of brownish-green phlegm, ankle swelling, orthopnea (six pillows), dyspnea (on walking one block), fever and chills, and tinnitus
Relevant lab values (assume all other lab values are normal):
Na =136, K= 3.8, glucose = 99, BUN = 19, Creatinine = 1.1, WBC = 5,600, Theophylline level = 5.7 ug/ml, Salicylate level = 32 mg/dl.
ABGs on room air: pH = 7.32, pCO2 = 57, pO2 = 57, HCO3= 30, O2 saturation = 81%.
Relevant diagnostic tests:
Chest x-ray- borderline cardiomegaly, chronic bronchitis with bibasilar pneumonia.
ECG - sinus tachycardia. PFTs - FVC = 3.08 (predicted 5.24), FEV1 = 2.00 (predicted 3.86); UGI/Small bowel series depicts an ulceration in the duodenal wall.
What are the potential complications of this disorder and why might they occur?