Sailaja Allamneni, MD - Pulmonology & Sleep Medicine

Sailaja Allamneni, MD, is a board-certified pulmonologist with Orlando Health Medical Group Lung and Sleep Medicine. She has extensive experience treating pulmonary diseases, including obstructive lung diseases, pleural diseases and interstitial lung diseases. She also provides critical care to patients with acute or life-threatening conditions.

Dr. Allamneni’s Training

After receiving her bachelor’s degree in biology from Duke University in Durham, North Carolina, Dr. Allamneni earned her medical degree at the University of South Alabama, College of Medicine in Mobile. She completed her postdoctoral training at the University of Alabama at Birmingham as part of the Tinsley Harrison Internal Medicine Residency Program. Her residency was followed by a fellowship in Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine at Duke University.

About Dr. Allamneni

Dr. Allamneni is certified in internal medicine, pulmonary disease and critical care medicine by the American Board of Medicine and is a member of the American Thoracic Society. She has served as an assistant professor in internal medicine at the University of North Carolina, School of Medicine and at Atrium Health in Charlotte, North Carolina. During her time in North Carolina, she also was recognized as a North Carolina Top Doctor in Pulmonary Medicine by Business North Carolina.

Obstructive Lung Disease

Difficulty exhaling all of the air in the lungs is a key symptom of obstructive lung disease, a classification of pulmonary lung diseases. This difficulty means at the end of each breath some air remains in the lungs and limits the amount of new air it is possible to breathe in with the next breath. This cycle results in "trapped" air and a shortness of breath.

Obstructive lung disease is commonly caused by asthma, bronchiectasis, cystic fibrosis, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), which includes conditions such as chronic bronchitis and emphysema.

After taking the patient’s history and completing a physical exam, Dr. Allamneni may recommend additional testing to accurately diagnose obstructive lung disease. Once the patient has been diagnosed, she will develop a personalized care plan and make arrangements for the best advanced procedures and treatment available. A few tests include:

• Arterial blood gas analysis – measures how well the lungs bring oxygen into the blood and remove carbon dioxide
• Chest X-ray – shows emphysema and helps rule out other lung conditions
• Computed tomography scan (CT scan or CAT scan) – a diagnostic test used to take pictures of the body from different angles
• Lung function tests – also known as pulmonary function tests, examine how well the lungs are working based on the amount of air a patient can inhale and exhale and if enough oxygen makes its way into the blood. The most common of these tests is spirometry.

Common Obstructive Pulmonary Diseases

The names of common obstructive pulmonary (lung) diseases are familiar to most people. With the high rate of smoking and vaping in the United States, along with the numerous toxins prevalent in the workplace and environment, many are at risk. Some of the most recognizable obstructive pulmonary diseases include:

• Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a broad term describing diseases characterized by airway inflammation, limited airflow, and damage to lung tissue. It is usually caused by smoking or exposure to cigarette smoke or to other irritants in the air. COPD worsens over time and cannot be cured, however treatment may help minimize damage to the lungs and help control symptoms.
• Emphysema and bronchitis are two common forms of COPD and generally appear together. Patients with emphysema have damage to the air sacs in their lungs and are unable to breathe in enough air to maintain the level of oxygen the body needs. Those who have had a cough with excessive mucus almost daily for at least three months may be diagnosed with chronic bronchitis. While these conditions vary in severity, they both make breathing difficult and the ability to perform everyday activities challenging.
• Wheezing, chest tightness, coughing and breathlessness are all signs of asthma, although patients will only experience these while they are having an asthma attack. The cause is not always certain, but this chronic condition is normally tied to environmental, genetic or occupational triggers. Identification of these triggers is the first step toward improved health. By developing a prevention plan and sticking to it, patients can lessen the frequency of attacks and participate in most everyday activities.

Pleural Diseases

Dr. Allamneni diagnoses and treats pleural diseases, which are conditions that impact or damage the pleura, a membrane lining the chest cavity and covering the lungs. The pleura has spaces between its layers called the pleural cavity. Pleural diseases include:

• Hemothorax – the presence of blood in the cavity
• Pleurisy – an infection in the cavity
• Pleural effusion – a buildup of fluid in the cavity
• Pleural tumors
• Pneumothorax – the presence of air of gas in the cavity

While symptoms differ between these diseases, a few common ones are:

• Chest pain
• Fatigue
• Shortness of breath
• Unexplained weight loss

As with all pulmonary diseases, testing is essential for an accurate diagnosis and development of an effective treatment plan. A few tests Dr. Allamneni performs to identify and diagnose pleural diseases include:

• Arterial blood gas analysis – measures how well the lungs bring oxygen into the blood and remove carbon dioxide
• Chest X-ray – shows emphysema and helps rule out other lung conditions
• Computed tomography scan (CT scan or CAT scan) – a diagnostic test used to take pictures of the body from different angles
• Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) – produces detailed images of the lungs and other organs in multiple areas
• Positron emission tomography (PET scan) – produces three-dimensional images of the reaction of cells to sugar to identify abnormal ones

Critical Care Medicine

Dr. Allamneni also specializes in critical care medicine, treating patients suffering from sepsis, acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and other critical illnesses. These patients usually are admitted through the emergency department and then transferred to the intensive care unit (ICU). She has experience stabilizing, diagnosing and treating patients with acute and life-threatening conditions and works closely with a group of specialists to provide the best level of care possible to critical care patients.