It is the job of your lungs to exchange oxygen for carbon dioxide, because all of the cells in your body must have oxygen to provide them with the energy that they need to do their work. Carbon dioxide is a waste product that must be removed. Yet millions of Americans suffer with pulmonary diseases and are not getting the oxygen that they need.
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease
This term is used when you have a chronic disease of your lungs, where the flow of air is obstructed. It is usually a result of emphysema or chronic bronchitis. In emphysema, part of your lung has been destroyed by smoking or by the hereditary deficiency of a substance that helps protect the lung (called alpha-one-antitrypsin). Chronic bronchitis is caused by smoking. You will be short of breath, cough a lot and cough up a lot of sputum (mucus).
Pneumonia
According to John Bartlett, M.D., of John Hopkins University, every year, 2 to 3 million people are diagnosed with pneumonia, and there are 45,000 deaths. Pneumonia is an infection of your lungs. Most pneumonia is due to bacterial infections, usually caused by S. pneumoniae. Viruses, however, can also cause pneumonia, and young children are especially susceptible (from RSV, rhinovirus, parainfluenza and adenovirus). If you have pneumonia, you will have difficulty breathing and rapid breathing, with fever, chills and chest pain. You will also be coughing a lot of sputum, which may have a particular color, depending upon which bacteria is causing your infection.
Bronchiectasis
Your trachea divides into bronchi. In bronchiectasis, your bronchi have become permanently enlarged due to reoccurring infections. Mark Chesnutt, M.D., writes in "Current Medical Diagnosis & Treatment" that 50 percent of all bronchiectasis is due to cystic fibrosis. But other causes for this disease include pneumonia. You will be coughing, have a green or yellow sputum and have difficulty breathing. You may also have very bad breath and spit up blood.
Asthma
Asthma is a pulmonary disease where your airways are obstructed, but the obstruction is reversible. Upper respiratory infections, exercise, cold air, stress or allergens trigger your bronchi. (Allergens include dust, animal hair and pollen.) With asthma, your bronchi are overly responsive, and on top of the airway inflammation, they produce too much mucus. The mucus accumulates, and now your airway is obstructed. You will be coughing and wheezing, have difficulty breathing and feel a tightness in your chest.
Cystic Fibrosis
This is one of the most common severe hereditary diseases in the United States. It is also the most common cause of severe lung disease for young adults. The genetic defect causes all secreting glands to produce mucus that is abnormally thick. This thick mucus obstructs and causes damage in the lung, which then leads to numerous, reoccurring pulmonary infections. (Cystic fibrosis also causes damage in the intestinal tract, pancreas and liver and causes nutritional deficiencies and male infertility.)
References
- "Current Medical Diagnosis & Treatment 2009"; Stephen McPhee, M.D., Maxine Papadakis, M.D.; 2009
- "Handbook of Pathophysiology"; Elizabeth Corwin, MSN, PhD, FNP; 2000
- The Merck Manual: Pneumonia
