What Are The Benefits Of Incentive Spirometer Use After Open Heart Surgery?
After any surgery involving general anesthesia, good care of the lungs is important in order to avoid pneumonia and other residue fluid in the lungs. Use of an incentive spirometer device is important because many heart surgeries require the use of a heart-lung machine. As a result, the heart is stopped and the lungs are deflated which can create mucous within the lungs. This Is A Picture Of Me Blowing Into An Incentive Spirometer In The Intensive Care Unit – Click To Learn More About My Story Following surgery, patients are asked to use an incentive spirometer and encouraged to take deep breaths and cough (if necessary). This helps remove any extra mucous or fluid in the lungs. If the airsacs stay closed and mucous builds up, pneumonia can develop. With good coughing and deep breathing, a patient gets on the road to recovery quickly. AUTHOR’S NOTE: Following my aortic valve replacement, I had a good amount of fluid in my lungs. This produced a painful cramp when I took deep breaths. A
