Problem
Karen has previously been diagnosed with chronic bronchitis - a long-term inflammatory disease of the airways that results in thick viscous mucous obstructing multiple airways. In Karen's recent visit to the hospital, she was also diagnosed with right-sided heart failure due to her poorly managed pulmonary hypertension. As a consequence, she has also developed peripheral oedema (fluid shifting from the intravascular space to the interstitium).
Answer the following question regarding how chronic bronchitis and right-side heart failure affect the normal function of the respiratory and cardiovascular systems.
Question: Use your understanding of ventilation-perfusion coupling (V/Q), to explain how the respiratory (ventilation) and cardiovascular (perfusion) systems would respond to airway obstruction (as seen in chronic bronchitis) and how this obstruction might result in pulmonary hypertension.