COPD, or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, is a chronic, ongoing, progressive disease of the lower respiratory tract in the lungs. The hallmark of the disease is difficulty with breathing that slowly gets worse over time. COPD is a seriously disabling disease with the potential for major complications and is often eventually fatal. According to the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, COPD is a major cause of disability, and it's the fourth leading cause of death in the U.S.
The disease develops most often as a result of smoking, but can also occur from long-term inhalation of other irritants into the lungs. COPD develops when irritants are breathed into the respiratory tract into the bronchioles, small hollow passageways that branch off the main airway from the mouth and nose. Normally, air and needed oxygen pass through the bronchioles and into the alveoli, tiny hollow sack-like structures in the lungs where oxygen is absorbed in to the bloodstream. When air is mixed with smoke or irritants, it can damage the lungs and their ability to take in enough oxygen. Long-term inhalation of irritants results in a loss of elasticity in the bronchioles and alveoli, destruction of the walls between alveoli, and swelling and inflammation of the airways. There is also an abnormally large amount of mucus production, which can block airways. The longer the lungs are exposed to smoke or irritants, the more likely it is that you will develop COPD. COPD is usually diagnosed in middle-age or elderly people, but it can happen younger in life.
See full list of 26 symptoms of COPD
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Book excerpts: Copyright © 2008 Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. All rights reserved.
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Research quality ratings and patient safety measures for medical facilities in specialties related to COPD:
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Choosing the Best Hospital: More general information, not necessarily in relation to COPD, on hospital performance and surgical care quality:
Rare types of diseases and disorders in related medical categories:
Read more about causes of COPD
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See full list of 65 treatments for COPD
See full list of 15 latest treatments for COPD
Medical news articles related to COPD include:
Source: HealthDay News
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Prognosis for COPD: Variable. Good prognosis depends on early diagnosis (i.e. on extent of lung damage).
Visit our research pages for current research about COPD treatments.
The US based website ClinicalTrials.gov lists information on both federally and privately supported clinical trials using human volunteers.
Some of the clinical trials listed on ClinicalTrials.gov for COPD include:
See full list of 292 Clinical Trials for COPD
Prevention information for COPD has been compiled from various data sources and may be inaccurate or incomplete. None of these methods guarantee prevention of COPD.
Read more about prevention of COPD
Possibly curable types of COPD include:
Rare types of COPD include:
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Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), also called chronic obstructive lung disease, is a term that is used for two closely related diseases of the respiratory system: chronic bronchitis and emphysema. In many patients these diseases occur together, although there may be more symptoms of one than the other. Most patients with these diseases have a long history of heavy cigarette smoking. (Source: excerpt from What is COPD: NHLBI)
Chronic, irreversible obstruction of air flow from the lungs. - (Source - Diseases Database)
A nonreversible lung disease that is a combination of emphysema and chronic bronchitis; usually patients have been heavy cigarette smokers - (Source - WordNet 2.1)
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