Which term best matches the following definition: Abnormal increase in the size of the air spaces in the lungs, resulting in labored breathing and an increased susceptibility to infection?

Which term best matches the following definition: Abnormal increase in the size of the air spaces in the lungs, resulting in labored breathing and an increased susceptibility to infection?

• A. Diabetes Mellitus
• B. Emphysema
• C. Hemophilia
• D. Hyperthyroidism

Answer: (B)

Describing an abnormal enlargement of the air spaces in the lungs that causes labored breathing and a higher risk of infection points to a lung condition where the walls between the air sacs are damaged. This leads to loss of surface area for gas exchange, air trapping, and the work of breathing increasing. The term that best fits this description is emphysema. In emphysema, the walls of the alveoli are destroyed, collapsing small airways and creating larger but fewer air spaces. This reduces the lungs’ ability to expel air and makes breathing feel hard, especially with activity. The damaged lung tissue also makes it easier for infections to take hold because mucus clearance is hampered and the immune response is less efficient in those damaged areas. The other conditions listed aren’t about changes in lung structure. Diabetes mellitus involves blood sugar regulation, hemophilia is a bleeding disorder, and hyperthyroidism affects thyroid hormone levels. None of these cause enlarged air spaces in the lungs, so they don’t match the described definition.

Describing an abnormal enlargement of the air spaces in the lungs that causes labored breathing and a higher risk of infection points to a lung condition where the walls between the air sacs are damaged. This leads to loss of surface area for gas exchange, air trapping, and the work of breathing increasing. The term that best fits this description is emphysema.

In emphysema, the walls of the alveoli are destroyed, collapsing small airways and creating larger but fewer air spaces. This reduces the lungs’ ability to expel air and makes breathing feel hard, especially with activity. The damaged lung tissue also makes it easier for infections to take hold because mucus clearance is hampered and the immune response is less efficient in those damaged areas.

The other conditions listed aren’t about changes in lung structure. Diabetes mellitus involves blood sugar regulation, hemophilia is a bleeding disorder, and hyperthyroidism affects thyroid hormone levels. None of these cause enlarged air spaces in the lungs, so they don’t match the described definition.