An Introduction of the Vaporized Therapy with Tea Herb Drink for Relieving Agitation due to Pulmonary Encephalopathy

Abstract

What methods would you choose apart from increasing sedatives for

agitation in an advanced patient with hypercapnic encephalopathy due

to AECOPD? This is a 94-year-old female who suffered from COPD for

over 30 years, occurred with an accelerated episode of cough, productive

sputum and a dropping down to 86% in SatO₂ due to a cold weather. A

diagnosis of pulmonary encephalopathy (PE) was made on the basis of the

subsequent agitation and delirium, and the sedatives, such as quatiepine

and haloperidol, had to be given for her mental excitation respectively, but

she still pulled out indwelling needle herself and refused to any infusion

therapy. As an alternative, a vaporized therapy integrated with tea herb

drinking had to be applied to relieving her agitation, being designed

as the vaporization of the inhaled oxygenation by means of high-flow

oxygenation device (HFOD), with an ampoule of ambroxol mixed into the

inhaler and simultaneous drinking of TCM tea herb for reducing sputum,

helping dissolve the mucoid bolts inside her terminal bronchioles when

being infected. We thought that a better efficacy would be achieved for

hypercapnic encephalopathy due to AECOPD if we concentrate on a good

ventilation of small airway through the vaporized therapy.