Quick GuideCOPD Lung Symptoms, Diagnosis, Treatment

• Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a chronic condition in which there is a slow, progressive obstruction of airflow into or out of the lungs.
• The primary cause of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease is cigarette smoking and/or exposure to tobacco smoke. Other causes include air pollution, infectious diseases and genetic conditions. The risk factors of COPD is increased by smoking tobacco, secondhand smoke, air pollution, alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency and a few other conditions.
• Chronic bronchitis, emphysema, asthma, and infectious diseases can contribute to the development of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
• Symptoms of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease include
  • cough,
  • chest discomfort,
  • shortness of breath, and
  • wheezing.
• Progressive or more serious symptoms may include
  • respiratory distress,
  • tachypnea,
  • cyanosis,
  • use of accessory respiratory muscles,
  • peripheral edema,
  • hyperinflation,
  • chronic wheezing,
  • abnormal lung sounds,
  • prolonged expiration,
  • elevated jugular venous pulse, and
  • cyanosis.
• The stages of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease range from stage I to stage IV. As the stage number increases the disease progressively becomes worse; stage IV is also known as "end stage" chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
• Depending upon the stage of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, other doctors besides the patient's primary care physician may be involved and may include pulmonologists, lung surgeons, and/or other professionals such as pulmonary rehabilitation specialists and other team members.
• Individuals should contact their doctors about COPD if they experience any of the signs or symptoms of COPD.
• The diagnosis of this health condition is by taking the patient's breathing history and exposure to irritants such as cigarette smoking or other agents. A pulmonologist usually determines the stage of COPD by their FEV1 level.
• The treatment for this health condition includes avoiding any of the risks and causes of COPD such as cigarette smoke or toxic fumes, medications, or in a small number of patients, lung surgery or lung transplant.
• Individuals with this health condition should contact their health-care professional before treating themselves with home remedies (for example, vitamins, antioxidants, omega-3 fatty acids).
• Medical treatments for COPD include medications to stop smoking, various bronchodilators, anticholinergics, steroids, and enzyme inhibitors.
• Other therapies for this health condition may include antibiotics, mucolytic agents, oxygen, endurance exercises, and yoga.
• Surgery for COPD may include bullectomy, lung volume reduction or lung transplant.
• Prevention or lowering the risk factors for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease includes avoiding the causes and irritants (for example, smoking) or vaccines that protect the lungs from infection (for example, the flu and pneumococcal vaccines).
• The prognosis and life expectancy for individuals with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease ranges from good to poor, depending on the person's COPD stage, with a decreasing outlook as the stages progress toward stage IV.

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease is a slowly progressive obstruction of airflow into or out of the lungs. The incidence of COPD has almost doubled since 1982. Experts have estimated about 32 million persons in the United States have COPD. The disease occurs slightly more often in men than in women. The symptoms (for example, shortness of breath, coughing) come on slowly and many people are consequently diagnosed after age 40-50, although some are diagnosed at a younger age. COPD patients may exhibit symptoms of chronic bronchitis, emphysema, and asthma.

The Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease (GOLD) defines chronic obstructive pulmonary disease as airflow limitation that is not fully reversible, usually is progressive, and is associated with an abnormal inflammatory response of the lungs to inhaled noxious particles or gases. This information will focus on chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and not on other related problems (for example, chronic bronchitis or asthma).