The common respiratory disorders are Bronchitis, Emphysema, Pneumonia, Asthma and Lung cancer.
3.4.1 Bronchitis
Bronchitis is the inflammation of lining of the air passages like trachea, bronchi and bronchioles.
Symptoms: One of the symptoms is secretion of excess mucus from the goblet cells in response to the irritation. The main symptom is cough, which occurs repeatedly. Coughing and breathlessness increases as the disease progress. Bronchitis can be acute or chronic.
Cause: Acute bronchitis usually lasts a few days only and is a side effect of viral infections like flu. Chronic bronchitis is most commonly caused by smoking and to a lesser extent by air pollution. It may last for months. The sensation of breathlessness occurs, due to the reduced gases exchange.
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Acute bronchitis: Short term bronchitis inflammation of the bronchi of the lungs.
Chronic bronchitis: It is the long term inflammation and irritation of the bronchi.
Treatment: The infection will generally go away on its own within one week. One should take the following steps for some relief: (a) Do not smoke. (b) Drink plenty of fluids. (c) Take rest. (d) An inhaler may be taken. (e) If your doctor thinks that you have a secondary bacterial infection, antibiotics may be prescribed.
3.4.2 Emphysema
Emphysema is a respiratory disease where there is over- inflammation of the alveoli in the lungs, causing a decrease in lung function.
Symptoms: The main sign of emphysema is increasing breathlessness. In advance case the patient finds it difficult to walk. The lungs loose elasticity, so that it becomes more difficult to exhale air. Inflammation and narrowing of the finer bronchioles also occur.
Cause: It is due to gradual breakdown of the thin
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walls of alveoli and the total surface area for gaseous exchange decreases. The main cause is the long- term irritation of the lungs, most commonly by cigarette smoke, air pollution or industrial dust.
Treatment: Treatment methods for emphysema do not cure or reverse the damage to the lungs. The best way to prevent emphysema is to avoid smoking. A variety of medications may be used in the treatment of emphysema.
3.4.3 Pneumonia
Pneumonia is defined as an inflammation of alveoli of lungs caused by acute infection. Double pneumonia is a lung infection that affects both lungs.