Combined Physiotherapy for Airway Clearance in Pneumonia: A Case Report

Abstrak

Background: Pneumonia is a major cause of impaired respiratory function, particularly in older adults, often characterized by secretion retention, reduced ventilation, and decreased functional capacity. Optimizing airway clearance through physiotherapy is essential to improve clinical outcomes.

Objective: To evaluate the clinical effectiveness of combined physiotherapy interventions in improving airway clearance and respiratory function in a patient with pneumonia.

Methods: A single-case report was conducted in a 66-year-old male with pneumonia presenting with dyspnea and productive cough. The intervention included infrared therapy, myofascial release, postural drainage, and Active Cycle of Breathing Technique (ACBT), administered once daily for four sessions. Outcome measures included dyspnea (Borg Scale), thoracic expansion (cm), and peak expiratory flow (PEF, L/min). Descriptive analysis was used to evaluate changes across sessions.

Results: Dyspnea decreased from Borg scale 6 to 2 after four sessions. Thoracic expansion improved across all regions, with upper thoracic expansion increasing from 2.3 cm to 3.8 cm. Peak expiratory flow increased from 320 L/min (63% predicted) to 410 L/min (approximately 80% predicted). Clinical findings showed reduced sputum production, normalization of breath sounds from rhonchi to vesicular, and improvement in percussion from dullness to resonance. These changes indicate clinically meaningful improvements in airway clearance and respiratory function.

Conclusion: Combined physiotherapy interventions may effectively enhance airway clearance and respiratory function in patients with pneumonia. However, findings from this single-case report should be interpreted cautiously, and further studies are needed to confirm generalizability.