What is Tachypnea?
Tachypnea is a term used to describe fast breathing. Usually, an adult breathes around 12 to 20 times per minute. But, the number may be higher for children and newborns. Why is this? The bodies of children and newborns need more oxygen and need to get rid of more carbon dioxide (CO2), because of their smaller size. Some people confuse tachypnea, or fast breathing, and tachycardia, fast heartbeat. But, they’re actually different: the heart rate talks about the heart’s activity, while the breathing rate talks about the lungs’ activity.
Fast breathing or tachypnea can be caused by a wide range of medical conditions, some serious, some not. It can be temporary or a chronic condition. To understand what’s causing the rapid breathing, doctors will look at the causes, study the body’s response, and approach it with full consideration. They will consult the latest research and use either manual or technology-based methods to count the number of breaths. After that, they may note down the patient as having a high “respiratory rate” or having “tachypnea”, depending on the situation. Both terms refer to the same idea – that a person is breathing faster than normal.
What Causes Tachypnea?
Tachypnea, or rapid breathing, doesn’t always mean something’s wrong with your health. For instance, your body naturally breathes faster during activities like exercise because it needs more oxygen. The same thing can happen if you travel to a higher-altitude area where the air is thinner. Sometimes, medications for health conditions or even recreational drugs that energize or stimulate the body, like caffeine, can cause faster breathing. It’s also normal for pregnant women, children, infants, and older adults to have a faster breathing rate.
That said, there are certain illnesses and conditions that can cause rapid breathing. These may include:
- Stroke: a medical condition where blood supply to the brain is interrupted.
- Sepsis: a serious infection that can spread throughout your body.
- Diabetic ketoacidosis: a severe complication of diabetes where the body starts breaking down fat at a fast rate.
- Pneumonia: an infection that inflames the air sacs in one or both lungs.
- Carbon monoxide poisoning: harmful when you breathe in too much carbon monoxide, a poisonous, odourless, and tasteless gas.
- Pulmonary embolism: a blockage in one of the pulmonary arteries in your lungs.
- Pleural effusion: a buildup of fluid between the layers of tissue that line the lungs and chest cavity.
- Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD): a group of lung diseases that block airflow and make it hard to breathe.
- Allergic reactions: fast breathing can be part of your body’s response to an allergen.
- Anxiety: feeling intense worry or fear can make you breathe faster.
- Foreign body aspiration: when something is stuck in your airway or lung.
- After a car accident: fast breathing can be a reaction to pain or stress from an accident.
Risk Factors and Frequency for Tachypnea
Tachypnea, or rapid breathing, in newborns could mean there is an issue with their respiratory system that becomes noticeable after birth. This condition can be due to problems with the normal removal of lung fluid in the fetus, which can result in breathing difficulties. Tachypnea is more common in premature babies. In fact, about 1 in 100 preterm infants and up to 6 in 1000 infants in general suffer from tachypnea. For adults, tachypnea is defined as taking more than 20 breaths per minute, while a normal breathing rate is between 12 to 20 breaths per minute.
- Tachypnea in newborns may indicate a problem with the respiratory system that becomes clear after birth.
- This condition can be caused by issues with fluid removal in the fetus’s lungs which can cause difficulty in breathing.
- Tachypnea is more common in premature babies.
- About 1 in 100 preterm infants and up to 6 in 1000 infants overall experience tachypnea.
- In adults, tachypnea is defined as taking more than 20 breaths per minute.
- Normal breathing rate in adults is between 12 to 20 breaths per minute.
Signs and Symptoms of Tachypnea
The assessment of a person’s breathing includes looking at their medical history and their current condition. Patients may report feeling breathless or like they cannot get enough air. They could be leaning forward in a “tripod position” or struggle with speaking. There are different terms to describe difficulty breathing such as dyspnea, bradypnea, apnea, acute or chronic dyspnea. Dyspnea typically means a person struggles to breathe, while bradypnea refers to slow breathing. In some cases, patients might not show any discomfort and may totally stop breathing, a condition called apnea.
In a physical examination, the breath rate or tachypnea, is recorded and checked in several ways like manually counting, monitoring devices or electronic medical records. Tachypnea can be a sign of sepsis and can determine the condition of the patient. It is important to measure breath rate multiple times during the patient’s visit, especially if their condition is getting worse. A comparison between their initial respiratory rate and a later measurement gives more clarity about their condition. Signs of insufficient oxygen include blue-tinged fingers or lips and using chest muscles to breathe. For infants, indicators of difficulty in breathing include a blue color around the mouth, signs of struggle when breathing, retraction of the chest while breathing, head bobbing, and flaring of the nostrils.
Testing for Tachypnea
If your doctor suspects that your rapid breathing (known as tachypnea) might be due to a health issue, they can use a device to measure the oxygen in your blood, as well as order a series of tests to help figure out what’s causing it. These tests can include:
- Arterial blood gases: This test lets your doctor check the oxygen and carbon dioxide levels in your blood, which can help them see if there are any issues with your body’s acid/base balance or metabolism.
- Glucose: Your doctor may also check your blood sugar to rule out a condition called diabetic ketoacidosis, which can cause rapid breathing.
- Metabolic panel: This is a blood test that checks different substances in your blood. It can let your doctor see if there’s anything affecting your breathing, like high levels of potassium (a condition called hyperkalemia).
- Complete blood count: This blood test can check for signs of anemia or infection by looking at levels of different types of cells in your blood.
- Toxicology screen: This test can detect drugs in your system. A positive screen for certain substances could help narrow down the cause of your rapid breathing.
There’s also a number of procedures your doctor may carry out:
- Electrocardiogram: This test measures the electrical signals that control your heart rhythm. Your doctor might do it more than once to keep track of your heart over time, especially if they think you might have a specific heart condition.
- Pulmonary function tests: These are tests that measure how well your lungs are working. They can help your doctor identify issues like obstructions or diseases affecting the lungs.
- Intubation: This is a procedure where a tube is inserted into your windpipe to help you breathe. Your doctor may need to do this very quickly if they believe you’re in danger of not being able to breathe on your own.
Finally, your doctor might use imaging to get a better look at what’s going on in your body:
- Chest x-ray: An x-ray can help your doctor see if there’s anything wrong with your lungs that might be causing rapid breathing, such as a collapsed lung, cystic fibrosis, or pneumonia.
- Chest computed tomography (CT) scan: This is a more detailed type of scan that can show other possible problems with the lungs or potential tumors.
- Lung ventilation perfusion scans: This scan is useful if your doctor thinks you might have a blockage in your lungs. They might consider this after first assessing your risk for these conditions.
- Ultrasound: An ultrasound can be used in newborns when differentiating from various causes of rapid breathing. Ultrasound also comes in handy for quick check-ups when conditions like fluid around the lungs, blood in the chest cavity (hemothorax) or inflammation of the heart’s lining (pericarditis) are suspected.
Treatment Options for Tachypnea
Tachypnea, which is a rapid breathing rate, is treated based on what’s causing it.
When it comes to newborn babies, they might experience what’s known as transient tachypnea, a temporary fast breathing rate. These infants will be given more oxygen, and in some cases, might need to spend some time in the baby ICU (Intensive Care Unit).
For children and adults, doctors need to consider a wide range of possible root causes for the rapid breathing. This is especially vital to ensure they don’t miss a severe condition like cancer. In some instances, a urinary tract infection may not cause rapid breathing in a young adult but could in an older adult. Recently, COVID-19 has been known to cause tachypnea in people of all ages, needing various treatments.
Suppose your rapid breathing is due to a lung condition like asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). In that case, it’s usually treated with medicines that help open up the airways (bronchodilators), with increased use of steroids and other supportive treatments depending on your specific situation. This should help slow down your breathing rate. Conditions like pneumo- or hemothorax, where there’s air or blood between your lung and chest wall, usually need a procedure to fix them.
Rapid breathing could also be a symptom of an underlying heart problem such as a heart attack, congestive heart failure, or valve issues, or due to a hormonal imbalance from conditions like diabetes, overactive thyroid, Cushing syndrome, or rare conditions like pheochromocytoma. In these cases, the treatment will vary depending on the severity of the problem.
If an infection is causing your rapid breathing, the treatment will depend on whether it’s bacterial or viral. Antibiotics are used to treat bacterial infections, while viral infections are typically managed with supportive care aimed at relieving symptoms. If you have more than one condition causing your rapid breathing, the doctors will treat them based on which is the most critical.
Sometimes, it might take a while to figure out what’s causing your tachypnea. For instance, diagnosing a rare brain tumor causing your rapid breathing might need numerous appointments. In the meantime, you might be given oxygen to help with the fast breathing.
What else can Tachypnea be?
When a patient shows signs of rapid breathing, known as tachypnea, different doctors may have different diagnoses based on the patient’s condition and age. For example, emergency doctors might look for deadly conditions first, while intensive care doctors might track the progress of breath rate and quality. A neurologist might look for types of strokes that can cause sudden or ongoing tachypnea. Therefore, some common diagnoses for different age groups are:
For infants and children, causes of rapid breathing could include:
- Respiratory distress syndrome
- Rapid breathing in newborns
- Pneumonia
- Asthma
In adults, the causes could be:
- Pneumonia
- Pulmonary embolism, which is a blockage in the lungs’ arteries
- Congestive heart failure
Older adults might experience fast breathing due to:
- Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, a type of lung disease
- Cancers
- Congestive heart failure
Infection is another common reason for quick breathing across all age groups. Mental health conditions such as generalized anxiety disorder or panic disorder can also cause this symptom.
Possible Complications When Diagnosed with Tachypnea
Rapid breathing, or tachypnea, can occur naturally during activities like exercise, but it can also be a sign of more serious health conditions, which can potentially lead to negative outcomes. People may experience tachypnea due to different health problems such as sepsis (a harmful, full-body response to an infection), acidosis (a high level of acid in the body), or congestive heart failure (a condition where the heart can’t pump blood adequately).
Lung issues like pneumonia, pleural effusion (excess fluid around the lungs), pulmonary embolism (a blood clot in the lungs), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), asthma or an allergic reaction may also cause rapid breathing. If not properly managed, conditions like congestive heart failure can progressively worsen.
Tachypnea is a symptom, not a disease. So, changes in the rate of one’s respiration can show if a patient’s condition is improving or worsening. Consequently, these changes might require adjustments in the medical treatment plan. There are no direct complications traced solely to tachypnea.
Potential Health Conditions:
- Sepsis
- Acidosis
- Congestive heart failure
- Pneumonia
- Pleural effusion
- Pulmonary embolism
- Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)
- Asthma
- Allergic reaction
Preventing Tachypnea
If you’re experiencing rapid breathing, also known as tachypnea, it’s important to remember that it doesn’t necessarily mean there’s a serious health problem. Sometimes, tachypnea can be caused by anxiety and getting more worried could make your breathing rate increase even more. Your doctor can help explain why your breathing rate has increased and compare it to what’s considered normal. This can help you better understand what’s happening.
It’s also important for you to know how to prevent future episodes of rapid breathing. Some possible steps you could take include reducing your caffeine intake, following up with a heart specialist, if required, or completing a full round of antibiotics, if prescribed for an infection. By following these steps, you can help take control of your condition.