CHRONIC OBSTRUCTIVE PULMONARY DISEASE (COPD)

What is it?

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is also sometimes known as chronic bronchitis, or emphysema. They are actually slightly different problems which often exist together. COPD is a disease which affects your lungs, causing shortness of breath, cough, wheeze and infections.

What causes it?

COPD is due to damage to your lungs which is almost always caused by smoking. It is occasionally caused, or at least made worse, by pollution.

Who gets it?

You are at enormously increased risk of COPD if you smoke, or have smoked. The more you smoke the higher your risk.

What are the symptoms?

The symptoms of COPD often come on gradually. You will find yourself getting more short of breath, especially after exercise. Your 9smoker's cough' may gradually get worse and you will feel wheezy and tight in the chest. You will start to cough up more and more phlegm and sometimes this will be yellow and mucky. When you get a chest infection, your breathlessness and cough will get worse and you may get sharp pains in your chest when you breathe deeply.

When should I go to my doctor?

If you are a smoker, you should be on the look- out for symptoms. If you get short of breath more quickly than other people your age, and especially if you get wheezy when you are breathless, you should make an appointment with your GP. If you suffer from COPD, you should arrange to see your GP soon if your phlegm gets yellow and you start to get more short of breath.

What tests will my doctor do?

Your GP will ask you questions and examine you. You may be sent for lung function tests, in which you have to blow into a machine which measures how well your lungs are working.

What is the short-term treatment?

You may need to use inhalers or take tablets, or both. If you have a chest infection and your COPD gets worse, you will need to take antibiotics and possibly steroid tablets. You may need to go to hospital to have steroids and antibiotics fed directly into your system through one of your veins.

Will I need long-term treatment?

Almost certainly. You will probably need to take inhalers at least on a regular basis. If your COPD gets worse, you may need to take the medicine from your inhalers through a machine called a nebuliser. You may need to get physiotherapy for your chest and you may need oxygen to breathe.

How can I stop it getting worse?

There is really only one way to stop COPD from getting worse, and that is to stop smoking. It is never too late to stop, as even if you already have COPD, it will stop your condition getting worse as quickly. If you have COPD and get a chest infection, you should see your GP promptly to get treatment. You should also try to avoid even passive smoking and other forms of pollution. It is also important to make sure you get the flu jab each year and you should also have a pneumonia jab (given just once).