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What Causes Shortness Of Breath And Dizziness While Walking?

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Posted on Thu, 17 Mar 2016
Question: I have shortness of breath all the time chest x ray and function test normal
doctor
Answered by Dr. Panagiotis Zografakis (34 minutes later)
Brief Answer:
anxiety?

Detailed Answer:
Hello,

let me start from this, I can't guess what OFT means. It's not a common acronym between doctors. Please explain.

A normal chest X-ray excludes most heart and lung disorders that may cause shortness of breath. The negative d-dimers test is very important to exclude pulmonary embolism.

Other causes like anemia will have to be clarified with common tests like a complete blood count. A strange and rare cause is carbon monoxide intoxication but it requires exposure to it. Only specific tests (measuring the affected hemoglobin) would prove it. Arterial blood gases would exclude almost all the rest potential causes.

If everything turns out to be normal then anxiety disorder will have to be considered. Anxiety may mimic any symptom. Shortness of breath is a common symptom in patients with anxiety.

I hope you find my comments helpful!
You can contact me again, if you'd like any clarification or further information.

Kind Regards!
Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
doctor
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Follow up: Dr. Panagiotis Zografakis (54 minutes later)
With the shortness of breath that happens when I'm walking I get the feeling of instability feeling dizzy. PFT- ( typo)Pulmonary Function Test was normal. Should I advocate more assertively and ask for chest CT? Your thoughts please as very concerned with these symptoms.

Thank yoi
XXXX


BTW my blood test done B12, TSH t3,t4, normal. My ferritin was low normal at 18. Should I suppl. With iron?
doctor
Answered by Dr. Panagiotis Zografakis (4 hours later)
Brief Answer:
no need for ct at this time

Detailed Answer:
If the tests I've mentioned are all normal then there is no need for the CT. The CT may identify lesions not identified in the CXR like tumors or pulmonary fibrosis and vascular problems like pulmonary embolism. But these kind of problems are not supposed to cause your symptom according to the negative results you've got.

Regarding ferritin, although it's not abnormal it's not the expected one. If there is a good reason for it like avoiding eating meat then it could be OK. If not then checking for the reason would be appropriate. A colonoscopy is indicated in individuals over 50 years old to screen for colon cancer and it would be very helpful to identify potential causes of iron depletion.

Kind regards!
Note: For further follow up on related General & Family Physician Click here.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
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Answered by
Dr.
Dr. Panagiotis Zografakis

Internal Medicine Specialist

Practicing since :1999

Answered : 3819 Questions

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What Causes Shortness Of Breath And Dizziness While Walking?

Brief Answer: anxiety? Detailed Answer: Hello, let me start from this, I can't guess what OFT means. It's not a common acronym between doctors. Please explain. A normal chest X-ray excludes most heart and lung disorders that may cause shortness of breath. The negative d-dimers test is very important to exclude pulmonary embolism. Other causes like anemia will have to be clarified with common tests like a complete blood count. A strange and rare cause is carbon monoxide intoxication but it requires exposure to it. Only specific tests (measuring the affected hemoglobin) would prove it. Arterial blood gases would exclude almost all the rest potential causes. If everything turns out to be normal then anxiety disorder will have to be considered. Anxiety may mimic any symptom. Shortness of breath is a common symptom in patients with anxiety. I hope you find my comments helpful! You can contact me again, if you'd like any clarification or further information. Kind Regards!