Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)

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Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is the result of the obstruction of the airways and of the air out of the lungs as you exhale. Not only is this condition usually permanent with attacks (called exacerbations when the attacks become worse, even life-threatening) occurring over long periods of time (hence the word “chronic” in the name of the condition), it can also become more serious with each attack. COPD is usually caused by three conditions that over time that wreak havoc on the respiratory system. These conditions are: chronic bronchitis, chronic asthma, and emphysema. However, chronic asthma is not as likely to cause COPD as the chronic bronchitis and emphysema (which the chronic bronchitis and emphysema sometimes are BOTH found in an individual suffering from COPD). All of the conditions that I have mentioned that cause the COPD will eventually lead to damage to your airways and it will mess with the normal oxygen/carbon dioxide exchange that occurs in your lungs.

Chronic asthma, even though this condition is not one of the main conditions that lead to COPD, can still lead to that condition. Chronic asthma, if treated, can lessen the severity of the attacks and the obstruction of the airways, and usually these attacks will not cause damage within the lungs and the airways of the body and the obstructions are even completely unblocked. However, if these chronic attacks go untreated, the airway obstruction caused by the inflammation of the chronic asthma will then become “fixed” and will then become permanent. So if a person suffering from chronic asthma ignores the shortness of breath and inflammation that accompanies this condition, and they don’t treat it, they will be more susceptible to developing COPD.

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...A person with COPD can take good care of themselves and live a pretty normal life. While it is harder for a person with COPD to do day to day things, there are ways they can train their body and get by. Since this condition can be life threatening, and the attacks can be very scary, talking to their doctor can always help them deal with what is happening in their own body. They can give them advice and options that can make dealing with COPD a lot better on them physically and mentally.

Works Cited

http://www.medicinenet.com/chronic_obstructive_pulmonary_disease_copd/article.htm

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0001153/

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/copdchronicobstructivepulmonarydisease.html

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/copd/DS00916

http://www.webmd.com/lung/copd/tc/chronic-obstructive-pulmonary-disease-copd-overview?page=3

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