Ellen Campbell -Grizzle

People who have difficulty breathing may be suffering from Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD). This is a disease that makes it difficult for air to move into and out of your lungs. It causes the airways of your lungs to be inflamed and become blocked. The airways become irritated and red, and make too much sticky mucus.

Cigarette smoking is the major known risk factor. Many persons have COPD and do not know. The disease progresses slowly. However, lung damage can develop long before you notice any symptoms.

Healthy lungs provide oxygen to the blood and remove carbon dioxide from the body. Your bronchioles are tube-like airways in your lungs that branch out into smaller and smaller airways, bringing air to and from your alveoli. These are grape like clusters of tiny air sacs where carbon enters and carbon dioxide exits. When your airflow is obstructed, breathing becomes difficult.

Shortness of breath

Symptoms of COPD include shortness of breath, frequent coughing, problems with completing routine activities and flare ups of shortness of breath, cough and excess mucus.

If you are worried about your lung health, take this quick test:

- Are you a smoker or former smoker 40 years or older?

- Do you have a cough with mucus that does not go away?

- Do you get a lot of chest infections?

- Do you get short of breath with doing a simple activity like climbing stairs?

If you answered 'yes' to being a smoker and ex-smoker and one of the other questions, you may be at risk for COPD.

Measure the air flow

When you cannot breathe out all the trapped air in your lungs, the way you breathe in will also be affected. If you have too much air remaining in your lungs from your previous breath, less air can be inhaled into your lungs because your alveoli cannot move air out and your small airways are narrowed and filled with mucus. The air cannot be released properly and your lungs become over-inflated during activity. This, in turn, increases shortness of breath and limits the ability to perform daily activities.

Doctors measure the airflow of your lungs to determine if you have COPD. Through a simple breathing test called spirometry, the amount of air that you can breathe out in one second is read. This forced expiratory volume (FEV1) is compared against a standard.

Medication is available

There are medicines that can help to reduce the symptoms of COPD. Your doctor will prescribe these for you. It is important that you take your medicines correctly. The major category of treatment that you may need includes:

- Bronchodilators that help to open airways and reduce shortness of breath.

- Anti-inflammatories - medicines that help to control the airway inflammation and prevent flare ups.

- Antibiotics that help fight bacterial infections and are used in addition to other medication during flare ups.

Living well with COPD

Exercise can help to keep you from deteriorating physically and improve your ability to carry out daily activities. Benefits include improved breathing, endurance of leg muscles and quality of life. You must conserve your energy and know when to rest. Flare ups of COPD are sometimes caused by bacterial infections in the lungs. Wash your hands regularly and limit exposure to conditions that can lead to infections.

Ellen Campbell-Grizzle, president, Caribbean Association of Pharmacists; director, Information & Research, National Council on Drug Abuse; email: yourhealth@gleanerjm.com.