Introduction
Chronic Respiratory Diseases are a health problem. With their high prevalence attributed to the negative impact on health-related quality of life, treatment costs, reduced working populations, and high disability and death rates. The most prevalent CRDs—chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), bronchial asthma, chronic rhinitis, and bronchitis—often coexist and show considerable personalized heterogeneity. However, the current definition of CRD is broader and includes other disabling conditions such as pulmonary hypertension, sleep apnea syndrome, restrictive lung diseases, tuberculosis, lung cancer, bronchiectasis, cystic fibrosis, sarcoidosis, and idiopathic interstitial pneumonias.
Common Types of Chronic Respiratory Diseases
Chronic respiratory diseases are long-term medical conditions affecting the air passages and lungs. Some of the most common are chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), asthma, occupational lung diseases, and pulmonary hypertension. In general, chronic respiratory diseases are not curable, but they are treatable, and with management of the disease and its symptoms, patients could live productive lives. It is important that you see a doctor if you or a family member has a persistent problem with symptoms such as a cough, mucus production, shortness of breath, trouble taking a deep breath, wheezing, and chest tightness. Early diagnosis and treatment could also help you prevent the disease from becoming worse. Most cases of chronic respiratory diseases caused by risks such as tobacco smoke, indoor air pollution, allergens, and occupational dusts and chemicals.
Three of the main types of chronic respiratory diseases are chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), asthma, and acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). Other similar diseases include cystic fibrosis, tuberculosis, bronchiectasis, and pleural diseases. Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease is a type of chronic disease of the lung. This call chronic obstructive lung disease (COLD), chronic obstructive airway disease (COAD), chronic airflow limitation (CAL), and chronic obstructive respiratory disease (CORD). The characteristics of this disease are breathlessness, abnormal sputum, and cough. These symptoms often present themselves after significant exposure to cigarette smoke and/or other noxious particles or gases. These noxious particles or gases are significant risk factors of COPD.
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), a preventable and treatable disease, is 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. Exacerbations and comorbidities contribute to the overall severity in individual patients. Chronic respiratory symptoms and airflow limitation are caused by smoking in the majority of patients. Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease is a major cause of chronic morbidity and mortality throughout the world and is a leading cause of death. The prevalent form of COPD includes chronic bronchitis and emphysema. Chronic mucus hypersecretion and cough, with or without chronic airflow limitation, usually indicate the presence of chronic bronchitis and are important predictors of incidence of COPD.
The hallmark of emphysema is abnormal and permanent enlargement of airspaces, but the structural abnormalities in COPD are not limited to the emphysematous lung. The bronchial, bronchiolar, and acinar wall, as well as the alveolar wall and interstitium, have features that may affect mechanical function, namely inflammation and fibrosis. Some features differentiate COPD from asthma, including decreased elasticity, increased collagen and proteoglycan contents, and muscle necrosis. Unlike the sterile nature of emphysema, bronchial invasion by potentially pathogenic microorganisms in chronic bronchitis raises specific diagnostic and therapeutic considerations. Coronary disease, stroke, peripheral vascular disease, hip fracture, muscle wasting, lung cancer, breast cancer, non-uremic renal decline, and osteoporosis are major comorbidities in patients with COPD in that they have an independent influence on the natural course of COPD. This chapter includes epidemiology, pathology, clinical manifestations, measurements, risk factors, prevention, and treatment of COPD.
Asthma
Asthma is a common chronic respiratory disease with an enormous diversity of clinical manifestations and associated phenotypes. The symptoms such as cough, chest tightness, wheeze, and breathlessness, which vary over time and in intensity, together with variable expiratory airflow limitation. Asthma affects people of all ages but often starts in childhood. The cessation of inflammation with inhaled corticosteroids remains central to asthma management, primarily for its beneficial effects on lung development, but disease reversal with long-term remission is no longer the therapeutic goal.
Treatment strategies show to be effective in the large majority of patients, while the 5-10% of subjects with severe disease account for most of the cost of asthma care, frequent visits to emergency departments, and stationary conditions. These patients require an accurate diagnosis ensuring that they suffer from true asthma and the elimination of modifiable risk factors including incorrect drug inhalation and compliance, smoking, allergens, irritants, or other comorbid conditions that can make asthma difficult to control. The role of environmental control considerin all children and is important in all patients with positive allergy tests to common aeroallergens. Individualized structured asthma management programs are often successful in controlling the disease. Asthma cannot be cured, but appropriate management can control the disease and allow most patients to lead an active life.
Bronchiectasis
Bronchiectasis is due to the abnormal continuous production of purulent secretions.This accumulation of secretions results in an obstructive airway. it can cause by congenital factors. like cystic fibrosis, immunodeficiency syndromes, ciliary dyskinesia, congenital middle lobe syndrome, allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis, and primary and secondary immunodeficiency syndromes. In addition, bronchiectasis can also acquire based on infectious etiologies, such as those due to viral, mycobacterial, post-infectious syndrome, and allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis. Given the characteristic sputum, diagnosis is through computed tomography of the thorax, and treatment typically involves antibiotics, initial intravenous followed by oral, although nebulized antibiotics can also be used.
In addition, airway clearance techniques and postural drainage are important in order to get rid of the accumulated secretions. For the management of chronic secretions, mucolytic agents can use, whereas in immunodeficient patients with bronchiectasis, gamma globulin treatment is an effective secondary prevention method. In addition, to complement bronchiectasis management, consider pulmonary rehabilitation for conditions that cause bronchiectasis to exacerbate.
Prevention Strategies and Public Health Initiatives
It is clear that cigarette smoking is the main cause of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.(COPD) and of some types of lung cancer. pollutionalso contributes to the overall occurrence of diseases. even though the exact contribution to the development of airway obstruction is still under debate. Some chronic respiratory diseases, like childhood and adult asthma, allergic rhinitis, cystic fibrosis, and primary ciliary dyskinesia have an important genetic basis, even though environmental factors also play a role in their onset. The introduction of selective measures against indoor air pollution, childhood infections, and improvement in the social conditions of mildly poor people contribute to more pleasurable and healthier lives.
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