These disorders limit chest wall restriction and limit air intake.
Ankylosing spondylitis
Ankylosing spondylitis is a systemic inflammatory disease that affects the joints of the axial skeleton.
Pulmonary involvement can be both direct and indirect:
Direct involvement is via the development of
interstitial lung disease.
Indirect involvement occurs when joints of the thoracic cage, such as the costovertebral joints, become fused; thus, movement is limited, and chest wall compliance is reduced.
Kyphoscoliosis
Kyphoscoliosis is characterized by abnormal curvatures in both the coronal and sagittal planes; the resulting rib displacement can restrict chest wall movement.
Kyphoscoliosis is a combination of two skeletal abnormalities:
–
Kyphosis is characterized by a posterior curvature.
– Scoliosis is characterized by a lateral curvature.
When restriction of the pulmonary system is severe,
hypoxemia can result.
Hypoxemia is the root of two common pulmonary complications of kyphoscoliosis: pulmonary hypertension and cor pulmonale.
Neuromuscular diseases
Neuromuscular diseases that affect the thorax can also cause pulmonary restriction:
