COPD (Introduction)

COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease) / COAD (Chronic Obstructive Airway Disease)

Introduction:

COPD and COAD are the one and the same. The usage of the terms depends on the country you come from. (^_^)

Definition:

- Lung disease are generally grouped into 2 categories, namely obstructive & restrictive diseases.

- Obstructive disease

• means - an increase resistance to air flow
• due to partial / complete obstruction
• at any level of the airway

- Restrictive disease

• means - a decrease in the ability of the lung to expand
• and - a decrease in the lung's air storage capacity

-COPD falls under the obstructive category of lung diseases. (However, note that there are no absolutes in the medical line. There are COPDs without obstructive elements! )

[NB: a tip for medical or nursing students in answering exam questions - if there is an answer to a question which states words such as ALL or NEVER or anything along that line, the chances that the answer is wrong is certain.(^_^)]

-COPD is a common progressive obstructive disorder ofthe airway with little or no reversibility.

-Clinically, COPD includes a combination of

• chronic bronchitis (a person with persistent productive cough for most days, in at least 2 consecutive years)
• emphysema (a person with permanent increase of air spaces beyond the normal size, at the level away from the terminal bronchioles-in other words, alveolar region)
• Think of the lung as an inverted tree, with it's trunk (trechea) slowly progressing to the leaves. The twigs of the tree are the bronchioles and the leaves are the alveoli / terminal sac.
• accompanied by destruction of their walls
• with / without obvious deposits of hardening tissue (due to reactive process to the disease).