COPD stands for Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease. It is typically caused by inhaled irritants such as tobacco smoke. It is a chronic inflammation of the airways, lung tissue, and pulmonary blood vessels. It limits air flow and is irreversible. The inflammation causes excess mucus production. This results in chronic cough, dyspnea, and wheezing. The inflammation response is caused by a grouping of cells in the airways from neutrophils, T-lmyphocytes, and other inflammatory cells that trigger…
Chronic bronchitis B. Bronchial Asthma * Recurrent and reversible shortness of breath * Occurs when the airways of the lungs become narrow as a result of: * Bronchospasms * Inflammation of the bronchial mucosa * Edema of the bronchial mucosa * Production of viscid mucus * Alveolar ducts/alveoli remain open, but airflow to them is obstructed * Symptoms * Wheezing * Difficulty breathing C. Asthma *…
There are toxic particles in smoke that can stimulate mucus secretion and destroy the infection-fighting phagocytes. (McMillan, 2010). Smoking can also make a person more susceptible to colds and other illnesses. Smoking has many risks, including bronchitis, cancer, asthma, emphysema, COPD, cardiovascular disease, slow bone healing and many more. Tobacco smoke in the body can convert into carcinogens, which can lead to lung cancer. Smoking can affect homeostasis by affecting oxygen levels and increasing the levels of carbon dioxide and by affecting the strength of the blood flow in the lungs. It would cause the heart to work harder to pump the blood to the lungs. (McMillan,…
Bronchiolitis is an inflammation of the bronchioles caused by an acute infection in the lower respiratory track. Different types of microorganism cause this infection, but the most common one is RSV (Respiratory Syncytial Virus). Other microorganisms include parainfluenza viruses type 1 and 3, adenoviruses, rhinoviruses, and Mycoplasma pneumonia.…
Two primary disease processes that contribute to COPD are emphysema and chronic bronchitis. The main difference between emphysema and chronic bronchitis is that in emphysema damage is to the walls of the air sacs in the lungs and in chronic bronchitis the damage is to the lining in the airways. Both conditions are generally caused by long term exposure to lung irritants, the most common of which is cigarette smoke. Other typical lung irritants contributing to COPD are air pollution, chemical fumes, and dust. The lung irritants cause inflammation; when inflammation is chronic, it causes scar tissue. Scar tissue in the airways decreases elasticity, air sacs are destroyed, walls of airways become thick and inflamed, and mucous production increases. The end result of damaged airways and excess mucous is decreased gas exchange and reduced lung capacity causing the symptoms of COPD (National Institutes of Health, 2013).…
The first is the danger that smoking can cause bouts of cancer. Content – content is harmful in cigarettes, such as nicotine activates cells – cancer cells in the lungs. As a result, the cells – cancer cells that will continue to grow and spread in all parts of the organ, so lung – pulmonary rot and can no longer work optimally. In the end they are suffering from Bronchitis. People-people who have been suffering from cancer of the lung is usually difficult in breathing because his…
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease is a progressive disease that constricts airways and dramatically hinders a person’s ability to breathe. It affects around 13% of Australians aged 40 or over. It causes mucus or blood-filled coughing, chest tightness and severe shortness of breath. The disease is comprised of Chronic Bronchitis, Asthma and Emphysema, with the seriousness of it being judged by four levels, each level increasing in severity. To this day, there is no known cure for the disease.…
As inflammation continues, the airways constrict, becoming excessively narrow and swollen. This leads to excess mucus production and poorly functioning cilia, a combination that makes airway clearance especially difficult. When people with COPD can't clear their secretions, they develop the hallmark symptoms of COPD, including a chronic, productive cough, wheezing and dyspnea. Finally, the build-up of mucus attracts a host of bacteria that thrive and multiply in the warm, moist environment of the airway and lungs. The end result is further inflammation, the formation of diverticula (pouch-like sacs) in the bronchial tree, and bacterial lung infection, a common cause of COPD exacerbation.…
Chronic bronchitis is “a productive cough that lasts at least three months for two consecutive years” (Mayo Clinic Staff, 2011). The bronchiole tubes become inflamed and enlarged narrowing the airways which will result in pulmonary hypertension. The air passage way can become blocked because of increased mucus production caused by enlarged mucus glands ("Chronic Bronchitis", n.d.). The cells that help the mucus move out of the body can become damaged reducing the ability to clear mucus from the air passage. A persistent cough is developed to try and get rid of the excess mucus. Smoking is the most common cause of chronic bronchitis (Mayo Clinic Staff, 2011). The symptoms of chronic bronchitis include an ongoing cough that produces mucus, shortness of breath and frequent respiratory infections. Chronic bronchitis is also known as type B COPD or “blue boaters” because they lack the oxygen needed, which causes a blue cast (cyanosis) in their skin and because the accumulation of fluid caused by congestive heart failure making their body swollen.…
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is an umbrella term used to cover many well known smoking related lung diseases such as chronic bronchitis and emphysema. Chronic bronchitis is a progressive inflammatory disease resulting from prolonged irritation of the bronchial epithelium with changes to the bronchi that include, increased size and number of mucus glands, oedema and other…
Each time a cigarette is smoked the detrimental chemicals pass through the airways to the lungs. A person may start with just a cough, but as time goes on they can come to develop asthma, COPD, emphysema, and then even cancer. When the lungs become irritated from the smoke, the cells that produce mucus will grow in quantity and size. This causes thicker and greater amounts of mucus in the lungs and airways. When there is an overproduction of mucus, your system has a hard time clearing it out. The mucus will start to build up causing you to cough as the passageways become narrower (UMPC). While this is happening with the mucus, tiny hair like structures that filter dust and dirt called the cilia dramatically start to slow down and die. Now…
The signs and symptoms of COPD may happen slowly. Shortness of breath, especially during activity, is one the earliest symptoms. You may have a morning cough that is dry, or that brings up mucus from the lungs. Smokers may mistake this cough for a “normal smoker’s cough”. A smoker’s cough is never “normal” and may mean that your lungs are already damaged by smoking. As time passes, the cough may start to last longer during the day. You may start to cough up more mucus. You may be prone to develop colds and other lung infections more often than you used…
Symptoms of COPD often don't appear until significant lung damage has occurred, and they usually worsen over time. For chronic bronchitis, the main symptom is a cough that you have at least three months a year for two consecutive years. Other signs and symptoms of COPD include: shortness of breath, especially during physical activities, wheezing, chest tightness, clearing your throat first thing in the morning, due to excess mucus in your lungs, chronic cough that produces sputum that may be clear, white, yellow or greenish, blueness of the lips or fingernail beds, respiratory infections, lack of energy, unintended weight loss in the late stages. People with COPD are also likely to experience episodes called exacerbations, during which their symptoms become worse and persist for days or longer.…
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) or also known as Chronic Bronchitis or Emphysema is a disease that happens in the lungs of people who smoke. It blocks the airflow to the lungs with black tar / black carbon. Some symptoms are excessive coughing and continuously out of breath. To ease the symptoms you could you use inhalers, steroids, antibiotics or just more oxygen. This disease will slowly kill you because it affects your respiratory system therefore making it a long and agonising suffocation. COPD is an incurable disease.…
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, is a Chronic and progressive illness that affects a person’s ability to breath. The affects to breathing occur due to obstructive airways caused by production of mucous from continuous inflammation and by constrictive airways caused by the narrowing of the bronchial tubes from spasms, scar tissue, reactive airways, infections of the lung, and the continuous response to irritating substances within the environment. Pollution, smoking, and other irritating substances cause the negative and damaging cascade of events that follow.…