COPD Research Paper

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, also known as COPD, is a lung disease that block airflow and makes breathing difficult. There are two common condition, emphysema and chronic bronchitis that help make up COPD. There are also about four gold stages; mild, moderate, severe, and very severe. COPD is the fourth leading cause of death in the U.S, the disease typically occurs after age 35. The two common conditions that make up COPD are chronic bronchitis, which is coughing due to mucus production in the lungs. This will occurs for about 3 months within the 2 years of having COPD. The other condition is Emphysema, which is when the alveoli at the end of the bronchioles in the lungs are destroyed. Over a period of time they air sacs lose the stretching and shrinking ability. When these conditions start there are couple symptoms that will start to occur. Symptoms of COPD do not appear

Cigarette smoking is 80% of the leading cause of COPD. Smoking both marijuana and tobacco will increase the risk of getting COPD by about three times compared to those who do not smoke. Another risk is people that have asthma and also smoke. Having asthma is bad enough but smoking on top of that will increase the risk of COPD even more. Also having long-term exposure to chemical fumes or vapors and ducts can inflame your lungs or at least irritate them. Another risk is genetics, which is called alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency. Only 1% of people that have COPD have this problem, their bodies cannot make enough AAT enzymes. The last risk factor would be age. The older you get the more at risk you have of developing COPD. COPD develops slowly over years and symptoms being around the age of 35- 40 years old. Having COPD damage to your lungs cannot be fixed, but there are different kinds of treatment that with help you from getting further damage to your