Highlights
About the disease
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) occurs in patients with emphysema, chronic bronchitis, or both. Despite its widespread incidence, the disease is under diagnosed, particularly in women.
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Symptoms may vary depending on the disease state, and may include:
- Progressive shortness of breath
- Chronic phlegm-producing cough
- Wheezing
Risk Factors
- Cigarette smoke accounts for over 80% of all cases of chronic obstructive lung disease.
- The typical COPD patient is a smoker or ex-smoker who smoked a pack a day for more than 20 years. Patients are usually over age 50.
- Smoking pipes or cigars also raises ones risk for the disease.
Treatment
- The most important treatment is to stop smoking.
- Some patients, especially those recovering form an acute flare-up, require pulmonary rehabilitation.
- Medications come in two forms. Those which are prescribed to prevent acute exacerbations, and rescue drugs that relieve symptoms, such as wheezing. Preventative “maintenance” medications are taken every day. One of the newest drugs is Spiriva (tiotropium bromide inhalation powder), a once-a-day inhaled medication for the treatment of bronchospasm associated with COPD.
- Oxygen replacement is the only treatment known to improve survival in COLD patients.
- If the patient fails to respond to drug therapy, surgery may be performed. Surgical options include a bullectomy, lung reduction, or lung transplantation. Advanced emphysema is responsible for over half of the lung transplants performed.
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