A 46-year-old man presents with chief complaint of 3-day duration of shortness of breath, cough with thick green sputum production, and fevers. He has a history of COPD with chronic cough but states the cough has gotten much worse and is interfering with his sleep. Sputum is thicker and harder for him to expectorate. Chest X-Ray reveals flattened diaphragm and increased AP diameter. Auscultation demonstrates hyper resonance and coarse rales and rhonchi throughout all lung fields. Explain the following:

1· The cardiovascular and cardiopulmonary pathophysiologic processes that result in the patient presenting these symptoms.

2· Any racial/ethnic variables that may impact physiological functioning.

3· How these processes interact to affect the patient.