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Multiple Choice

Which lung sound would most likely result from bronchospasm?

Bronchospasm narrows the small airways, which makes airflow more turbulent and causes the walls of the airways to vibrate. That vibration produces a high-pitched, musical sound known as a wheeze, which is classically heard in conditions like asthma or other obstructive processes. Crackles (rales) come from movement of air through fluid-filled or collapsed small airways, not primarily from airway narrowing. Stridor signals an obstruction higher up in the airway (often the nose, pharynx, or larynx) and is typically louder on inspiration. So the sound most consistent with bronchospasm is the wheeze.

Bronchospasm narrows the small airways, which makes airflow more turbulent and causes the walls of the airways to vibrate. That vibration produces a high-pitched, musical sound known as a wheeze, which is classically heard in conditions like asthma or other obstructive processes.

Crackles (rales) come from movement of air through fluid-filled or collapsed small airways, not primarily from airway narrowing. Stridor signals an obstruction higher up in the airway (often the nose, pharynx, or larynx) and is typically louder on inspiration. So the sound most consistent with bronchospasm is the wheeze.