Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (also called COPD) is a chronic lung disease that includes two main illnesses: chronic bronchitis and emphysema (say: "em-fa-see-ma"). There is no cure for COPD.

Your lungs have 2 main parts: bronchial tubes (also called airways) and alveoli (also called air sacs). When you breathe in through your wind pipe, the air moves through your bronchial tubes and into your alveoli. From the alveoli, oxygen goes into your blood while carbon dioxide moves out of your blood.

If you have chronic bronchitis, the lining in your bronchial tubes gets red and full of mucus. This mucus blocks your tubes, and makes it hard to breathe.

If you have emphysema, your alveoli are irritated. They get stiff and can't hold enough air. This makes it hard for you to get oxygen into and carbon dioxide out of your blood.

About 14 million people in the United States have COPD. The disease develops over many years. It is almost always caused by cigarette smoking. The best way prevent or keep COPD from getting worse is to quit smoking.

The most common signs of COPD are chronic coughing and shortness of breath. If you are a smoker who coughs and is usually short of breath, then you might have COPD. Talk to your doctor if you experience any of these symptoms.

Your doctor might give you a special test to see how well your lungs are working. In this test, you take deep breaths and then blow into a machine. The machine measures how deeply you can breathe and how fast you can move air in and out of your lungs. You might also have a chest x-ray. The x-ray can show signs of COPD.

If you have COPD, the most important thing you can do is to stop smoking. This can stop or at least slow the damage to your lungs. Talk to your doctor about how to stop smoking. If you quit smoking soon, you have a better chance of living longer and being healthier.

Your doctor may also have you take some medicines to make you feel better and breathe more easily. These medicines can include antibiotics and some medicines that you inhale (breathe in). You might need to take steroids and antibiotics if you get a respiratory infection.

Some people with more advanced COPD need to use oxygen. You breathe the oxygen through tubes that you put in your nose or through a mask that goes over your mouth and nose.

Patients with very serious COPD might have surgery. They might have a lung reduction operation or a lung transplant. These surgeries are usually done only in people who have not done well with other treatments.

To take inhaled medicines, you might use a small handheld canister or you might use a nebulizer machine to deliver a specific amount of medication to your lungs. A nebulizer machine turns liquid medicine into a vapor (like a cloud) that you can breathe. This machine is often used to treat people with more serious COPD. It also helps people who have trouble using handheld inhalers.

Your doctor will tell you how to take your medicine. It is important to follow your doctor's instructions carefully, so that your lungs receive the right amount of medicine.

If you have COPD, you might be more likely to get colds and flu. Because your heart can be strained, it will get bigger. You might have high pressure in the vessels that bring blood to your lungs.

You should have a flu shot every year. You should also have a pneumonia shot. You are less likely to get flu or pneumonia if you have these shots. Rehabilitation and exercise programs specifically for people who have COPD may also be helpful.