A patient with an asthma exacerbation experiencing tachypnea is most likely to receive which medication?

• A. A Nicotine product
• B. B Opioid antagonist
• C. C Antihypertensive
• D. D Bronchodilator

Answer: (D)

In an asthma flare, the airways are constricted, making it hard to move air in and out. The rapid breathing you’re seeing (tachypnea) is the work of breathing ramping up to try to overcome that obstruction. The best choice is a bronchodilator because it directly relaxes the smooth muscle around the airways, quickly widening them and lowering airway resistance. Fast-acting inhaled bronchodilators, like albuterol, stimulate beta-2 receptors to increase cAMP in airway smooth muscle, causing rapid bronchodilation. This relieves bronchospasm, improves airflow, and reduces the effort required to breathe, which often brings down the tachypnea.

The other options don’t address the acute airway narrowing. Nicotine products can irritate or constrict airways and aren’t used to treat asthma. An opioid antagonist treats overdose, not asthma symptoms. Antihypertensives don’t affect bronchial smooth muscle or acute bronchoconstriction. So the bronchodilator is the medication that directly targets the problem in this scenario.