What effect is expected after bronchodilator use in COPD?

What effect is expected after bronchodilator use in COPD?

• A. Improved ventilation and reduced dyspnea
• B. Worsened gas exchange
• C. Decreased heart rate
• D. Increased mucus production

Answer: (A)

Bronchodilators work by relaxing airway smooth muscle, which opens the smaller airways and lessens airway obstruction. When the airways widen, airflow during expiration improves, air trapping decreases, and the work of breathing drops. That combination leads to clearer ventilation and less sensation of breathlessness, so dyspnea is reduced. Because the main action is increasing airway caliber, gas exchange tends to improve or at least stabilize as ventilation becomes more effective. The other options don’t fit the typical therapeutic effect: bronchodilators do not reliably slow the heart rate (in fact, some can cause tachycardia as a side effect), nor do they increase mucus production—better airflow can even help with mucus clearance rather than worsen it.

Bronchodilators work by relaxing airway smooth muscle, which opens the smaller airways and lessens airway obstruction. When the airways widen, airflow during expiration improves, air trapping decreases, and the work of breathing drops. That combination leads to clearer ventilation and less sensation of breathlessness, so dyspnea is reduced.

Because the main action is increasing airway caliber, gas exchange tends to improve or at least stabilize as ventilation becomes more effective. The other options don’t fit the typical therapeutic effect: bronchodilators do not reliably slow the heart rate (in fact, some can cause tachycardia as a side effect), nor do they increase mucus production—better airflow can even help with mucus clearance rather than worsen it.