Every day the average takes about 17,000 breaths, but emphysema can make each one a real struggle. If you have this problem, there are a number of positive steps you can take to breathe more easily and greatly improve your quality of life.
What is happening
Your lungs are packed with tiny air sacs called alveoli, which are ringed by microscopic blood vessels (capillaries). In healthy lungs, air flows easily in and out, and oxygen passes efficiently into the capillaries while carbon dioxide, the waste product, returns to the lungs and is exhaled. With emphysema, alveoli deform; they lose their elasticity and decrease in numbers, making breathing difficult (see illustration below)
A persistent, mucus -producing cough and shortness of breath are the first and most obvious symptoms of emphysema, and probably what brought you to the doctor. Some people with emphysema describe the effort to draw enough air into their lungs as 'trying to breathe though a pillow'. As the disease progresses, so does your breathing difficulty. In advanced stages, people often fight for air after just a few steps. Emphysema also taxes your heart by forcing it to work harder to circulate blood through the lungs.
More than 800,000 Australians and New Zealanders have emphysema. Some 90 percent of cases are triggered by long-term cigarette smoking; irritants in the smoke inflame alveoli walls, and over time they lose their elasticity, making it more and more difficult to breathe.
LIKELY FIRST STEPS
The goal of emphysema treatment is to slow or even half the disease's progression. The single most important step you can take is to stop smoking cigarettes. To further ease your distress, your doctor will prescribe medications that open your lungs, reduce airway irritation and, when the need arises, short-circuit potentially dangerous infections. And you can help reduce your symptoms by taking certain precautions, starting an exercise program and learning special breathing techniques.
What is happening
Your lungs are packed with tiny air sacs called alveoli, which are ringed by microscopic blood vessels (capillaries). In healthy lungs, air flows easily in and out, and oxygen passes efficiently into the capillaries while carbon dioxide, the waste product, returns to the lungs and is exhaled. With emphysema, alveoli deform; they lose their elasticity and decrease in numbers, making breathing difficult (see illustration below)
A persistent, mucus -producing cough and shortness of breath are the first and most obvious symptoms of emphysema, and probably what brought you to the doctor. Some people with emphysema describe the effort to draw enough air into their lungs as 'trying to breathe though a pillow'. As the disease progresses, so does your breathing difficulty. In advanced stages, people often fight for air after just a few steps. Emphysema also taxes your heart by forcing it to work harder to circulate blood through the lungs.
More than 800,000 Australians and New Zealanders have emphysema. Some 90 percent of cases are triggered by long-term cigarette smoking; irritants in the smoke inflame alveoli walls, and over time they lose their elasticity, making it more and more difficult to breathe.
- Quit smoking to slow progression of the disease
- Try medications to ease breathing and fight infections.
- Avoidance of air pollutants to protect against irritation.
- Breathing techniques to strengthen your breathing muscles.
QUESTIONS TO ASK
- Do I have the right inhaler and am I using it correctly?
- Is it safe for me to fly?
- Would it help me significantly to move to a warmer, drier climate?
Would I be a good candidate for a lung transplant?
Treatment Options
LIFESTYLE CHANGES
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Stop smoking Essential for any improvement
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Learn better breathing Improve fitness, muscle function and exercise tolerance.
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Avoid 'bad' air Especially smoke and very cold weather.
MEDICATIONS
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Bronochodilators Relax breathing muscles, expand airways
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Long-acting beta agonists Provide sustained relief.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Anticholinergic agent Reduces breathlessness and number of flare-ups
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Corticosteroids Ease inflamed respiratory system.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Antibiotics Fight respiratory infections
Procedures
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Supplemental oxygen Improves stamina.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Surgery Reduces or replaces diseased lungs.
TAKING CONTROL
LIFESTYLE CHANGES
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Stop smoking Essential for any improvement
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Learn better breathing Improve fitness, muscle function and exercise tolerance.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Avoid 'bad' air Especially smoke and very cold weather.
MEDICATIONS
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bronochodilators Relax breathing muscles, expand airways
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Long-acting beta agonists Provide sustained relief.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Anticholinergic agent Reduces breathlessness and number of flare-ups
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Corticosteroids Ease inflamed respiratory system.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Antibiotics Fight respiratory infections
Procedures
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Supplemental oxygen Improves stamina.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Surgery Reduces or replaces diseased lungs.
TAKING CONTROL
- Enrol in an outpatient rehab program. Health professionals will guide you through aerobic exercise and breathing techniques, answer questions, provide education and direct you to support groups for pulmonary patients. Such programs improve your ability to cope with emphysema.
- Plan before air travel. increase your mobility by ordering supplemental oxygen equipment supplied by Airlines will not allow you to bring your own oxygen unit on board the aircraft.
- Maintain your weight. It's easy to lose weight because laboured breathing consumes a lot of kilojoules and makes eating difficult. Each day, eat several smaller meals of nutritionally rich foods, and take a high-potency vitamin and mineral supplement.
- A university of Pittsburgh researcher is developing a device known as the Hattler Respiratory Catheter that can be threaded into a major leg vein to act as an artificial lung for someone with emphysema. The catheter provides about half of the oxygen an adult body needs and can stay in place for up to two weeks. This makes it potentially useful for emphysema patients who develop pneumonia or other respiratory complications and need extra help breathing while their lungs heal. The device is under review by the Food and Drug Administration.
Treatments
The goal of emphysema treatment is to slow or even half the disease's progression. The single most important step you can take is to stop smoking cigarettes. To further ease your distress, your doctor will prescribe medications that open your lungs, reduce airway irritation and, when the need arises, short-circuit potentially dangerous infections. And you can help reduce your symptoms by taking certain precautions, starting an exercise program and learning special breathing techniques.
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