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Emphysema is a type of lung disease that causes shortness of breath. The air sacs in the lungs (alveoli) are destroyed in persons with emphysema. The inner walls of the air sacs weaken and rupture over time, resulting in bigger air gaps rather than many small ones. This reduces the surface area of the lungs and, as a result, the amount of oxygen that enters the bloodstream.
When you exhale, the injured alveoli do not function properly, allowing old air to become stuck and leaving no place for fresh, oxygen-rich air to enter.
WHAT ARE THE SYMPTOMS OF EMPHYSEMA?
You may initially have no symptoms or just moderate symptoms. Your symptoms will likely worsen as the condition progresses. They may include the following:
- Coughing or wheezing frequently
- A cough that produces a large amount of mucus
- Shortness of breath, particularly during vigorous activity
- When you breathe, you may hear a whistling or squeaky sound.
- Feeling of tightness in your chest
Some patients with emphysema are prone to respiratory infections including colds and the flu. Emphysema can cause weight loss, weakness in your lower muscles, and swelling in your ankles, feet, or legs in severe cases.
WHAT ARE THE CAUSES OF EMPHYSEMA?
The most common cause of emphysema is long-term exposure to airborne irritants such as:
- Tobacco use
- Marijuana use
- Air pollution
- Dust and chemical fumes
In rare cases, emphysema is caused by a hereditary lack of a protein that protects the lungs' elastic structures. The condition is known as alpha-1-antitrypsin deficiency emphysema.
WHAT ARE THE RISK FACTORS OF EMPHYSEMA?
The following factors enhance your chances of developing emphysema:
- Smoking: Cigarette smokers are more likely to develop emphysema, although cigar and pipe users are equally at risk. The risk increases with the number of years and amount of tobacco smoked for all types of smokers.
- Age: Although the lung damage caused by emphysema develops gradually, most persons with tobacco-related emphysema report symptoms between the ages of 40 and 60.
- Secondhand smoke exposure: Secondhand smoke is smoke that you mistakenly inhale from someone else's cigarette, pipe, or cigar. It is also known as passive or ambient tobacco smoke. Being exposed to secondhand smoke raises your risk of developing emphysema.
- Occupational exposure to fumes or dust: You are more prone to get emphysema if you breathe fumes from certain chemicals or dust from grain, cotton, wood, or mining materials. This danger is heightened if you smoke.
- Pollution from both indoor and outdoor sources: Breathing indoor pollutants, such as heating fuel fumes, as well as outside pollutants, such as car emissions, increases your risk of emphysema.
WHAT ARE THE COMPLICATIONS OF EMPHYSEMA?
Emphysema patients are also more likely to develop:
- Pneumothorax (collapsed lung): Because the function of the lungs is already weakened in persons with severe emphysema, a collapsed lung can be fatal. This is unusual, but when it does occur, it is serious.
- Heart issues: Emphysema can cause an increase in blood pressure in the arteries that link the heart and lungs. This can result in cor pulmonale, a disorder in which a portion of the heart swells and weakens.
- Large holes in the lungs (bullae): Some persons with emphysema develop bullae, which are empty areas in the lungs. They can be as huge as half the size of the lung. Giant bullae can raise your risk of pneumothorax in addition to lowering the amount of room available for the lung to expand.
HOW IS EMPHYSEMA DIAGNOSED?
Your doctor will ask about your medical history and perform a physical exam to determine if you have emphysema. A range of tests may be recommended by your doctor.
Imaging tests
A chest X-ray can help support an advanced emphysema diagnosis and rule out alternative causes of shortness of breath. However, if you have emphysema, a chest X-ray can reveal normal findings.
CT scans combine X-ray pictures obtained from various angles to create cross-sectional views of inside organs. CT scans can aid in the detection and diagnosis of emphysema. If you are a candidate for lung surgery, you may also get a CT scan.
Lab tests
Blood drawn from an artery in your wrist can be examined to see how successfully your lungs carry oxygen into your circulation and eliminate carbon dioxide.
Lung function tests
These noninvasive tests determine how much air your lungs can retain and how well air moves in and out of them. They can also assess the efficiency with which your lungs carry oxygen to your bloodstream. One of the most common tests is blowing into a basic equipment called a spirometer.
WHAT ARE THE TREATMENTS FOR EMPHYSEMA?
Although emphysema and COPD cannot be cured, therapies can help reduce symptoms and halt disease progression.
Medications
Depending on the severity of your symptoms, your doctor may recommend:
- Bronchodilators: By relaxing restricted airways, these medications can help reduce coughing, shortness of breath, and other breathing difficulties.
- Inhaled steroids: Corticosteroid medications breathed as aerosol sprays reduce inflammation and may aid in the relief of shortness of breath.
- Antibiotics: Antibiotics are recommended if you have a bacterial illness, such as acute bronchitis or pneumonia.
Surgery
Depending on the severity of your emphysema, your doctor may recommend one or more of the following surgeries:
- Lung volume reduction surgery: Surgeons use this surgery to remove tiny wedges of diseased lung tissue. Removing the sick tissue allows the remaining lung tissue to expand and function more efficiently, improving breathing.
- Lung transplant: If you have serious lung damage and all other treatments have been exhausted, lung transplantation may be an option.
Therapy
- Pulmonary rehabilitation: A pulmonary rehabilitation program can teach you breathing exercises and techniques to help minimize your shortness of breath and enhance your capacity to exercise.
- Nutrition therapy: You will also be given nutritional guidance. Many people with early-stage emphysema need to lose weight, but persons with late-stage emphysema often need to gain weight.
- Supplemental oxygen: If you have severe emphysema and low blood oxygen levels, utilizing oxygen at home and during exercise may provide some relief. Many patients use oxygen 24 hours a day, seven days a week. It's normally given through a thin tube that inserts into your nostrils.
HOME REMEDIES FOR EMPHYSEMA
If you have emphysema, you can stop its progression and protect yourself from complications by doing the following:
- Quit smoking: This is the most critical step you can take for your general health, and it is the only one that has the potential to slow the advancement of emphysema. If you need assistance quitting smoking, consider enrolling in a smoking cessation program. Avoid secondhand smoke as much as possible.
- Other respiratory irritants should be avoided: These include paint and automotive exhaust fumes, certain cooking aromas, certain perfumes, and even burning candles and incense. To reduce pollution, replace furnace and air conditioner filters on a regular basis.
- Obtain the recommended vaccinations: Make sure to obtain an annual flu vaccine as well as pneumonia immunizations as recommended by your doctor.
- Prevent respiratory infections: Make every effort to avoid direct contact with persons who have the flu or a cold. If you must interact with large groups of people during the cold and flu season, wear a face mask, wash your hands often, and keep a small bottle of alcohol-based hand sanitizer on hand.
- Regular exercise: Try not to let your breathing problems prevent you from obtaining regular exercise, which can help you enhance your lung capacity dramatically.
- Protect yourself from chilly air: Cold air can trigger bronchial spasms, making it even more difficult to breathe. Wear a soft scarf or a cold-air mask — available from a drugstore — over your mouth and nose before heading outside in chilly weather to warm the air entering your lungs.
HOW CAN EMPHYSEMA BE PREVENTED?
Because smoking is the leading cause of emphysema, the best method to avoid it is to quit smoking. It's also critical to avoid lung irritants including secondhand smoke, air pollution, chemical fumes, and dusts.