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Copd

azaard•

11 years ago•4 Replies

Copd is not as disorder in its self it is a term used to cover the many lung and repiratory disorders there are.

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azaard

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artiste11 years ago

COPD: Definition

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a lung disease characterized by chronic obstruction of lung airflow that interferes with normal breathing and is not fully reversible. The more familiar terms 'chronic bronchitis' and 'emphysema' are no longer used, but are now included within the COPD diagnosis. COPD is not simply a "smoker's cough" but an under-diagnosed, life-threatening lung disease.

A COPD diagnosis is confirmed by a simple test called spirometry, which measures how deeply a person can breathe and how fast air can move into and out of the lungs. Such a diagnosis should be considered in any patient who has symptoms of cough, sputum production, or dyspnea (difficult or labored breathing), and/or a history of exposure to risk factors for the disease. Where spirometry is unavailable, the diagnosis of COPD should be made using all available tools. Clinical symptoms and signs, such as abnormal shortness of breath and increased forced expiratory time, can be used to help with the diagnosis. A low peak flow is consistent with COPD, but may not be specific to COPD because it can be caused by other lung diseases and by poor performance during testing. Chronic cough and sputum production often precede the development of airflow limitation by many years, although not all individuals with cough and sputum production go on to develop COPD.

who.int/respiratory/copd/de...

11 years ago

This is the BLF's definition of copd, it covers two diseases, emphysema and chronic bronchitis, not many lung disorders.

"Mark_BLFHelpline BLF Hi Everyone

Please take this post as what it is meant to be - to clarify some info about COPD - if you like "sorting the wheat from the chaffe (?)"

COPD is the occurrence of chronic bronchitis or emphysema - a pair of commonly co-existing diseases of the lungs which causes the airways to narrow over time. This causes shortness of breath.

COPD is defined by it's characteristically low air flow - spirometry used to measure the airflow - the low air flow is not reversible and gets worse over time. Whereas with asthma the restriction/low air flow is reversible.

Asthma and COPD are two different conditions - some people with COPD also have some asthmatic compenent - but people with asthma do not have COPD. Someone with asthma for many years can find that the reversible aspect of their asthma becomes less and less, and the damage to the airways more permanent - and this permanent damage is very similar to that found in COPD - which is why some people with asthma are told they have progressed to COPD, when perhaps the more accurate term is fixed airways disease.

The treatment of copd tends to be similar regardless of whether someone has more or less emphysema than bronchitis and vice versa. People with emphysema tend to need oxygen. Alpha 1 can affect other organs other than the lungs, so anyone with Alpha 1 may have more "complicated" treatment - but the treatment of their copd will not be any different from someone who has copd due to another cause.

COPD affects everyone differently - everyone manages their condition differently - the treatments are generally the same across the board regardless of how your COPD started.

Bronchiectasis (a separate condition to copd) is a permanent abnormal widening in one or more of the airways. Extra mucous tends to collect in those parts of the airway that are widened. The widened airways with mucous are prone to infection. The cause of bronchiectasis is not clear, some conditions that affect or damage the airways can cause bronchiectasis e.g. whooping cough, pneumonia, measles etc. It is possible to have both bronchiectasis and another condition.

Thanks

Mark "

George

toonamp11 years ago

That's a bit like saying Cancer is not a disorder in itself as there are a number of types It makes no real sense, sorry, but what exactly do you mean?