COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease)

COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease)

Definition of COPD:

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a preventable and treatable disease characterized by persistent airflow limitation that is usually progressive and associated with an enhanced chronic inflammatory response in the airways and the lung to noxious particles or gases.

Disease under COPD:

1.  Chronic bronchitis.  

2.    Emphysema.

 

What are the Obstructive pulmonary diseases:

Risk Factors for COPD:
1.    Cigarette smoking ( Most important risk factor; 95% in UK)
2.    Indoor air pollution ( Cooking with biomass fuels)
3.    Occupational exposure ( Coal dust, Silica & cadmium)
4.    Recurrent infection.
5.    Low socioeconomic status.
6.    Cannabis smoking.
7.    Childhood infection.
8.    Maternal smoking.
9.    Low birth weight.
10.  Alfa 1-antiproteinase deficiency.
11.  Airway hyper-reactivity.

 

Clinical Feature of COPD:

History:

·         Age (COPD is a disease of old age).

·         Duration of cough, sputum and breathlessness.

·         Smoking.

·         Family history (positive).

·         Exacerbating factors such as cold weather, smoking, exercise.

 

Symptoms:

·         Cough.

·         Sputum production.

·         Breathlessness.

·         Haemoptysis.

·         Morning headache (indicative of hypercapnia)

·         Features of complications- e.g. features of heart failure, pneumothorax etc.

 

Differential diagnosis of COPD:

1.    Chronic bronchial asthma.

2.    Bronchiectasis.

3.    Congestive cardiac failure.

4.    Pulmonary tuberculosis.

 

Complication of COPD:

1.    Pneumothorax- due to rupture of emphysematous bulla into pleural space.

2.    Recurrent pulmonary infections.

3.    Pulmonary hypersensitivity.

4.    Cor-pulmonale.

5.    Congestive cardiac failure.

6.    Type-2 respiratory failure.

7.    Secondary polycythaemia- due to chronic hypoxia.

Categories: chronic obstructive pulmonary disease