respiratory therapy
Meaning of respiratory therapy: One heading covers a nebulizer given for a few minutes and a ventilator running for weeks, so the phrase alone says nothing about intensity.
Definition of respiratory therapy
Respiratory therapy is the group of treatments and exercises used to improve or maintain lung function and to make breathing easier. It covers inhaled medicines, supplemental oxygen, techniques for clearing mucus from the airways, breathing and conditioning exercises, and machines that assist or take over breathing altogether.
What does it include?
| Component | What it does |
|---|---|
| Inhaled medicine | Delivers a drug straight to the airways, by inhaler or nebulizer |
| Supplemental oxygen | Raises the oxygen reaching the blood when the lungs cannot manage alone |
| Airway clearance | Loosens and moves mucus using percussion, vibration, positioning, breathing techniques or a vest |
| Breathing exercises | Trains the pattern and the muscles of breathing, including pursed lip and diaphragmatic techniques |
| Noninvasive ventilation | Supports breathing through a mask, with no tube in the airway |
| Invasive ventilation | Takes over breathing through a tube, in intensive care |
Who receives it, and why?
The reasons divide roughly into three. Acute illness, where pneumonia, an asthma attack, a flare of long standing lung disease or a chest injury temporarily overwhelms the lungs. Chronic disease, where the aim is to hold function steady and reduce flare-ups over years, as in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, bronchiectasis, cystic fibrosis, and neuromuscular conditions that weaken the muscles of breathing. And recovery, after surgery, prolonged bed rest or a long stay in intensive care, where the lungs expand poorly and secretions collect. The mix differs completely between those situations, which is why one person may need a single inhaled treatment while another needs several sessions a day and continuous machine support.
How does it differ from pulmonary rehabilitation and chest physiotherapy?
The three terms overlap and are used differently in different countries. Respiratory therapy is the broadest, stretching from a nebulizer to a ventilator. Chest physiotherapy names the hands-on and positional techniques for clearing secretions and reopening parts of the lung, and in many countries it is delivered by physical therapy practitioners rather than by a separate profession. Pulmonary rehabilitation is a structured program combining supervised exercise, education and support across a period of weeks, aimed at improving what a person is able to do rather than at treating a single episode. The three are frequently used together, so someone recovering from surgery may receive airway clearance during the admission and enter a rehabilitation program afterward. Where the profession exists, a respiratory therapist carries out much of this work alongside nurses and physicians.
Used in a sentence
Respiratory therapy was ordered to help the patient regain lung function after surgery.
Good to know
Respiratory therapy acts on lung function directly through inhaled treatment, oxygen, airway clearance and ventilation, which separates it from physical therapy aimed at strength and mobility and from pulmonary rehabilitation, a structured exercise and education program.
Word origin
Where “respiratory therapy” comes from
Formed from Latin respirare, meaning to breathe, from re- (again) and spirare (to breathe), combined with therapy, from Greek therapeia, meaning treatment or healing.