Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a group of diseases characterised by limitation of airflow in the airway that is not fully reversible. COPD is the umbrella term for chronic bronchitis and/or emphysema. It is most often due to tobacco smoking but can be due to other airborne irritants such as coal dust or solvents.

The main symptoms of COPD include shortness of breath dyspnea lasting for months or perhaps years, possibly accompanied by wheezing, and a persistent cough with sputum.

The leading cause of COPD is smoking. Continuous smokers have at least a 25% risk of developing COPD. Working or living in a polluted environment is a possible cause of COPD. For example, many people develop COPD after working in the coal mining industry and being exposed to high levels of respirable coal dust.

A good prognosis of COPD relies on an early diagnosis and prompt treatment. Most patients will have improvement in lung function once treatment is started, however eventually signs and symptoms will worsen as COPD progresses. The median survival is about 10 years if two-thirds of expected lung function was lost by diagnosis.

...More at Wikipedia 

Related Links:

• American Lung Association
• US National Library of Medicine

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