To alleviate eating-related dyspnea in COPD, the most appropriate action is to:

• A. Administer bronchodilator during meals.
• B. Administer bronchodilator before meals.
• C. Avoid bronchodilators before meals.
• D. Administer antibiotics before meals.

Answer: (B)

The key idea is that opening the airways before a meal reduces the extra work of breathing that eating can provoke in COPD. A bronchodilator taken before meals relaxes the smooth muscle of the airways, lowers airway resistance, and improves airflow. This makes breathing easier during the meal, so the patient can eat without becoming dyspneic and tiring out the diaphragmatic muscles.

Administering bronchodilator during or after meals wouldn’t prep the airways in time for the increased breathing effort that eating requires, and avoiding bronchodilators misses a direct way to lessen bronchospasm. Antibiotics don’t address bronchoconstriction and aren’t indicated for eating-related dyspnea unless there’s an infection. So giving the bronchodilator before meals best targets the symptom by optimizing airway caliber right when it’s most needed.