When Does Asthma Become Copd

How The Body Handles Hot Temperatures

As a means of reducing the temperature of the body to maintain the optimal core temperature 37oC, the body performs the following:

1.       The thyroid gland reduces hormones into the body to reduce heating in the body and releasing as much heat as possible by doing the following.

2.       Decreasing heart rate,

3.       Decreasing blood pressure,

4.       Decreasing metabolism,

5.       Increasing the size of the blood vessels in the skin to increase heat loss and water loss through sweating,

6.       Increasing water loss from the kidneys to again increase heat loss from the water excretion

The issue is that as the temperature increase above 32 oC, the bodys ability to reduce and increase heat loss has reached its limits . This is where it becomes dangerous for the body and normal bodily functions start to fail.

How The Body Handles Cold Temperatures

LAs a means of heating the body to maintain the optimal core temperature of 37 oC, the body performs the following:

1.       The thyroid gland reduces hormones into the body to start a process of heating and storing heat doing the following.

2.       Increasing heart rate,

4.       Increasing metabolism

5.       Cause the muscles to shiver to generate heat

6.       Reducing the size of the blood vessels in the skin to reduce heat loss and water loss,

7.       Reduce water loss from the kidneys to again reduce heat loss from the water loss

The issue is that as the temperature drops below 0 oC, the bodys ability to heat it up the body and reduce heat loss has reached its limits . This is the point where it becomes dangerous for the body and normal bodily functions start to fail. 

Who Is At Risk For Copd

The risk factors for COPD include

• Smoking. This the main risk factor. Up to 75% of people who have COPD smoke or used to smoke.
• Long-term exposure to other lung irritants, such as secondhand smoke, air pollution, and chemical fumes and dusts from the environment or workplace
• Age. Most people who have COPD are at least 40 years old when their symptoms begin.
• Genetics. This includes alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency, which is a genetic condition. Also, smokers who get COPD are more likely to get it if they have a family history of COPD.
• Asthma. People who have  have more risk of developing COPD than people who dont have asthma. But most people with asthma will not get COPD.

When To Get Medical Advice

See a GP if you have persistent symptoms of COPD, particularly if you’re over 35 and smoke or used to smoke.

Do not ignore the symptoms. If they’re caused by COPD, it’s best to start treatment as soon as possible, before your lungs become significantly damaged.

The GP will ask about your symptoms and whether you smoke or have smoked in the past. They can organise a breathing test to help diagnose COPD and rule out other lung conditions, such as .

Find out more about how COPD is diagnosed.

Knowing When To See A Professional

Clearly, there are numerous ways to effectively manage asthma and COPD, which means the prognosis for both diseases can be hopeful as long as each condition is caught early. While neither asthma nor COPD are considered curable, asthma is typically easier to control on a daily basis by avoiding triggers and taking the proper medication. As a progressive disease, COPD may get worse over time, but sticking with a physician-prescribed treatment plan can slow the disease’s progression and lessen symptoms.

The first step in successfully managing both conditions is to see a medical professional. Whether you suffer from difficulty breathing, coughing, wheezing or chest tightness or simply have a family history of the disease, you should consider seeking professional help. After consulting with a medical specialist, you will have a better idea of your condition and available treatment options.

It is especially important to receive medical attention specifically intended for your individual condition. Look for a rehabilitation center like Post Acute Medical that offers cardiopulmonary health services explicitly created to benefit asthma and COPD patients. At Post Acute Medical, there are precise treatment plans and therapies for a wide range of cardiopulmonary conditions, including COPD and asthma.

• Methods to maximize oxygen intake.
• Disease pathology.
• Infection control.
• Respiratory care.

Monitoring Managing And Treating Asthma And Copd

Once the conditions are diagnosed, the medications used to manage asthma and COPD are similar and usually involve an inhaler of some sort. However, other types of treatment and therapies for each disease tend to differ. This section will explore the different approaches used to monitor and manage asthma and COPD in everyday life.

Research For Your Health

The NHLBI is part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services National Institutes of Health the Nations biomedical  agency that makes important scientific discovery to improve health and save lives. We are committed to advancing science and translating discoveries into clinical practice to promote the prevention and treatment of heart, lung, blood, and sleep disorders, including asthma. Learn about the current and future NHLBI efforts to improve health through research and scientific discovery.

Can Asthma Turn Into Copd

Asthma doesnt always lead to COPD, but it is a risk factor. Lung damage caused by poorly controlled asthma along with continual exposure to irritants like cigarette smoke or occupational chemicals and fumes is irreversible and can increase a persons risk of developing the lung disease COPD. It is possible to have both asthma and COPD, a condition called Asthma-COPD overlap syndrome .

Airflow Limitation In Copd

The chronic airflow limitation of COPD is caused by a mixture of small airway disease and parenchymal destruction , the relative contributions of which vary from person to person . Chronic inflammation causes structural changes and narrowing of small airways. Destruction of the lung parenchyma, also by inflammatory processes, leads to the loss of alveolar attachments to the small airways and decreases lung elastic recoil; in turn these changes diminish the ability of the airways to remain open during expiration .

So in COPD inflammation causes small airway disease and parenchymal destruction that all lead to airflow limitation .

Contact Post Acute Medical Today

If you have asthma or COPD, learn more about the cardiopulmonary health services available to you by contacting Post Acute Medical today. At Post Acute Medical, we concentrate on quality care, patient satisfaction and long-term positive outcomes. Providing high-quality care to our patients is our top priority.

Find out how Post Acute Medical can help you manage your COPD or asthma by locating the facility nearest you and calling for more information.

What Happens In The Lungs To Make Us Cough In Cold Temperatures Below 0 Oc

The issue with cold air is that it doesnt hold water very well, as it usually freezes water in the air below 0oC, making it heavy, i.e. causing ice and/or frost to build up on surfaces like grass, trees, cars, etc

On top of this, cold air dries out particles which are breathed into the lungs. The lungs work on a principle of humidity and water vapour, i.e. water around a particle is attracted to water molecules in the mucus on the airway walls of the lungs to help capture the particles and transport them out of the lungs to be coughed out or swallowed as a part of the clearance process to maintain lung hygiene. 

The issues with cold air below 0oC cause 3 affects within the lungs.

1.       Reduced Humidity level of the lungs As mentioned, the ideal humidity level in the lungs is 100%. With cold air of 0 oC or less entering the lungs, this has the potential to reduce the humidity level of the air in the lungs, resulting in dehydrating the mucus and drying out the skin of the airway walls . This in turn causes the airway walls to become dried out, causing redness, agitation and potentially leading to inflammation and excess mucus secretion. To better understand the effects, think of how the cold wind on the outside of our body dries out our skin as it blows across the skin. This draws out moisture and eventually causing redness if exposed too long.

Risk Factors Of Asthma Copd And Of The Overlap Syndrome

Asthma-COPD overlap syndrome can develop when there is an accelerated decline in lung function, or incomplete lung growth, or both. , The determinants for these events, like tobacco smoke exposure etc., are presumed to be shared with asthma and COPD. , However, the distribution of risk factors across asthma, COPD and the overlap syndrome has not been thoroughly investigated and may offer new insights into the mechanisms of the different respiratory diseases.

Our findings show that the risk factor profiles of subjects with the diagnosis of asthma, COPD and asthma-COPD overlap syndrome are different, even if they share some common patterns. Women had a higher susceptibility for the asthma-COPD overlap syndrome than men, while gender was not associated with either the prevalence of asthma or COPD alone. Accordingly, the higher prevalence of adult asthma reported in women could be at least partially due to their increased susceptibility to the overlap syndrome .

Although it is recognised that active and passive smoking are the major risk factors for COPD, there are conflicting results on the association between asthma and smoking. In our study, smoking was significantly and positively associated with all the three diseases, however the strength of the association was much higher for COPD than for asthma or the overlap syndrome.

Ask The Allergist: Does Chronic Asthma Lead To Copd

, Ask the Allergist,

Q: Ive had severe asthma all my life. Am I at risk for developing chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or COPD?

Bradley Chipps, MD: Not every person with asthma develops ; they are two different conditions. However, we are seeing a significant number of patients who have features of both asthma and COPD and distinguishing between the two is not always easy.

Asthma is an inflammatory lung disease often associated with allergies, and symptoms vary over time and in intensity.

COPD is a progressive disease that usually develops after the age of 40. It is characterized by persistent airflow limitation and inflammation, commonly associated with exposure to noxious particles or gases primarily cigarette smoke, either from personal use or secondhand exposure, or environmental pollutants, including biomass fuels from poorly vented gas stoves.

While asthma does not automatically lead to COPD, a person whose lungs have been damaged by frequent flares of poorly controlled asthma is at increased risk of developing COPD or if they are living or working in environments where they are exposed to airborne pollutants.

Some develop Asthma/COPD Overlap , which is now being recognized more widely in the medical community.

Q: Can you stop the progression of COPD if you catch it early enough? 

Q: Whats the treatment for ACO?

I also recommend pneumonia and annual flu vaccinations, smoking cessation assistance and pulmonary rehabilitation, or exercise programs.

What Is The Prognosis And Life Expectancy For A Person Copd Vs Asthma

The prognosis for COPD ranges from fair to poor and depends on how rapidly COPD advances over time. In general, individuals with COPD have a decrease in their lifespan according to research.

If you have asthma, the prognosis for most people ranges from fair to excellent, depending upon how well you can identify what triggers your attacks, and your response to medication.

Differences Between Copd And Asthma

There are a number of other differences between COPD and asthma as well.

• Often diagnosed during childhood or adolescence

• Symptoms more likely to occur episodically and/or at night

• Commonly triggered by allergens, cold air, exercise

• People who have asthma are more commonly nonsmokers

• Comorbid conditions include eczema and allergic rhinitis

• Treatment usually involves inhaled steroids

• Airflow restriction mostly reversible

• Likely to cause morning cough, increased sputum, and persistent symptoms

• Exacerbations commonly triggered by pneumonia and flu or pollutants

• Most people who have COPD have smoked or had significant secondhand smoke exposure

• Comorbid conditions include coronary heart disease or osteoporosis

• Treatment usually involves pulmonary rehabilitation

• Airflow restriction is permanent or only partially reversible

Once you develop COPD, your symptoms will generally be chronic. Over time, with COPD, you are likely to experience symptoms that are not typical for asthmalosing weight, decreased strength, and diminished endurance, functional capacity, and quality of life.

Medical History And Physical Exam

Your doctor will ask about your risk factors for asthma and your . They may ask also about any known allergies. This includes how often symptoms occur, what seems to trigger your symptoms, when or where symptoms occur, and if your symptoms wake you up at night.

During the physical exam, your doctor may:

• Listen to your breathing and look for of asthma
• Look for allergic skin conditions, such as eczema

What Are The Types Of Copd

COPD includes two main types:

• affects the air sacs in your lungs, as well as the walls between them. They become damaged and are less elastic.
• Chronic bronchitis, in which the lining of your airways is constantly irritated and inflamed. This causes the lining to swell and make mucus.

Most people with COPD have both emphysema and chronic bronchitis, but how severe each type is can be different from person to person.

Global Alliance Against Chronic Respiratory Diseases

The Global Alliance against Chronic Respiratory Diseases contributes to WHOs work to prevent and control chronic respiratory diseases. GARD is a voluntary alliance of national and international organizations and agencies from many countries committed to the vision of a world where all people breathe freely.  

References

Clinical Recognition And Inflammatory Features Of The Overlap Syndrome: What Is It

The clinical recognition of both asthma and COPD requires assessment of symptoms and physiological abnormalities . Symptoms can indicate the presence of a disease process; however, their sensitivity and specificity for asthma or COPD may be limited. At a physiological level, patients with overlap syndrome have evidence of incompletely reversible airflow obstruction that can be detected by a reduced postbronchodilator FEV1 . In addition, they have increased variability of airflow, which can be determined by increased bronchodilator responsiveness or BHR. The presence of airflow obstruction can confound the assessment of BHR in COPD. For recognition of the overlap syndrome, it may be preferable to use an indirect acting stimulus to assess BHR. Such agents do not directly cause airway smooth muscle contraction, and include hypertonic saline, adenosine and mannitol.

Informative data can be obtained from studies of discrete patient groups who have features of asthma and COPD. These groups include patients with asthma who smoke, those with asthma who develop incompletely reversible airflow obstruction and non-smokers who develop COPD. Smokers with asthma have features resembling COPD, since they are less responsive to corticosteroids and are less likely to have eosinophilic inflammation and more likely to have increased airway neutrophilia.

Tests To Diagnose Copd

Spirometry

Spirometry is the most reliable way to diagnose COPD. It is a simple breathing test that measures the speed and the amount of air you are able to blow out of your lungs. If you are short of breath doing simple tasks, ask your health-care provider about sending you for a spirometry test. Your health-care provider may also refer you for other pulmonary function tests.

Chest X-ray

A chest x-ray may be useful to show some signs of COPD and to rule out other disorders, but should not be used to confirm the diagnosis of COPD.

Oximetry

This test measures the amount of oxygen in your blood using a clip that goes on your finger, toe or earlobe.

Inflammatory Mediators Involved In Asthma

Chemokines are important in the recruitment of inflammatory cells into the airways and are mainly expressed in airway epithelial cells . Eotaxin is selective for eosinophils, whereas thymus and activationregulated chemokines and macrophage-derived chemokines recruit Th2 cells . Cysteinyl leukotrienes are potent bronchoconstrictors and proinflammatory mediators mainly derived from mast cells and eosinophils . Cytokines orchestrate the inflammatory response in asthma. Key cytokines include IL-1 and TNF, and GM-CSF. Th2-derived cytokines include IL-5, which is required for eosinophil differentiation and survival; IL-4, which is important for Th2 cell differentiation; and IL-13, needed for IgE formation . Histamine is released from mast cells and contributes to bronchoconstriction and inflammation . Nitric oxide , a potent vasodilator, is produced from syntheses in airway epithelial cells . Exhaled NO is increasingly being used to monitor the effectiveness of asthma treatment . Prostaglandin D2 is a bronchoconstrictor derived predominantly from mast cells and is involved in Th2 cell recruitment to the airways .

Airway structural cells involved in the pathogenesis of asthma are: airway epithelial cells, airway smooth muscle cells, endothelial cells, fibroblasts and myofibroblasts and airway nerves .

Q: How Can I Improve My Lung Health On My Own

No matter which lung condition you have, working closely with your healthcare team can control its effects on your everyday life. But there are other steps you can take as well. For instance, if you smoke, its never too late to quit. Make sure that youre current with all vaccinations, especially the pneumococcal and annual flu vaccine. These viruses can be very harmful to people with a lung disease. In addition, consider asking your provider about pulmonary rehabilitation if you have consistent breathing problems. This type of rehabilitation focuses on managing symptoms, exercising, and eating a nutritious diet. 

Which Is Worse: Copd Or Asthma

COPD is worse than asthma. With a well-designed treatment plan, asthma symptoms can be controlled sufficiently to return lung function to normal, or very close to normal, so the condition is generally considered reversible. Though COPD symptoms can be well-managed with various treatments, the respiratory disease is irreversible, so any damage impairing lung function that has occurred cannot be restored.

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease

In the recent Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease Guidelines , COPD is defined as follows: a disease state characterised by airflow limitation that is not fully reversible. The airflow limitation is usually progressive and associated with an abnormal response of the lungs to noxious particles or gases.

Inflammatory Mediators Involved In Copd

Chemotactic factors: Lipid mediators: e.g., leukotriene B4 attracts neutrophils and T lymphocytes, Chemokines: e.g., interleukin-8 attracts neutrophils and monocytes. Proinflammatory cytokines: e.g., tumor necrosis factor- , IL-1 , and IL-6 amplify the inflammatory process and may contribute to some of the systemic effects of COPD. Growth factors: e.g., transforming growth factor-ß may induce fibrosis in small airways .

Asthma May Raise Risk Of Copd Emphysema

Asthma Patients May Be Up to 17 Times More Likely to Develop Incurable Lung Diseases

July 12, 2004 — Adults with may face dramatically higher risks of developing potentially deadly lung diseases later in life, according to a new study.

Researchers found asthmatic people were 12 times more likely to be diagnosed with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease than people without .

is a group of lung diseases for which there is no cure. causes permanent damage to the , making it difficult to breathe. It includes and chronic bronchitis.

According to the National , Lung, and Institute, it is the fourth leading cause of death in the U.S. and the world.

“Our study shows a strong link between asthma diagnosis and the development of COPD, which suggests they may share a common background,” says researcher Graciela E. Silva, MPH, of the University of Arizona’s College of Medicine in Tucson, in a news release. “It is possible that factors such as smoking and repeated episodes of acute may facilitate the evolution of into COPD, but the process by which asthma and COPD become comorbid conditions is not clear.”

Inflammatory Cells In Asthmatic Airways

Mast cells -activated mucosal mast cells release bronchoconstrictor mediatorshistamine, cysteinyl leukotriens, prostaglandin D2. They are activated by allergens through IgE receptors or by osmotic stimuli . Eosinophils are in increased number in airways, release basic proteins that may damage epithelial cells, and have a role in releasing a growth factors and airway remodeling , T lymphocytes are in increased number and release specific cytokines, including IL-4, IL-5, IL-9, IL-13 that orchestrate eosinophilic inflammation and IgE production by B lymphocytes . There may also be an increase in inKT cells which release large amounts of T helper: Th1 and Th2 cytokines . Dendritic cells,Macrophages are in increased number, and release inflammatory mediators and cytokines that amplify the inflammatory response . Nutrophils are in increased number in airways and sputum of patients with severe asthma and in smoking asthmatics, but the role of these cells is uncertain and their increase may even be due to steroid therapy .

Prevalence Of Asthma And Copd In The General Population Aged 2085 Years

There is a paucity of knowledge on the prevalence of asthma in the elderly, probably because asthma and COPD tend to overlap, making the diagnosis complex. , On the contrary, the large majority of epidemiological studies on COPD, which is usually assumed to be an aging disease, has been focused on elderly population and only few studies have been performed on young adult populations .

Our study is one of the few that reports the prevalence of both diseases in people aged from 20 to 84 years. It documents that asthma and COPD are major health problems, affecting about 13% of adults and 20% of the elderly. As people got older, the prevalence of asthma decreased , while the prevalence COPD increased . However, the prevalence of asthma and COPD remained non negligible even at the extremes of the age range. It is likely that this age-related pattern of asthma and COPD reflects both the true pattern of disease prevalence and the differential doctors diagnostic propensity according to the age of their patients . Indeed, distinguishing between asthma and COPD can be quite challenging, even for the most expert medical professional, and COPD is often misdiagnosed as asthma in young people, while the opposite happens in the elderly. This could explain in part our finding showing that the prevalence of asthma and/or COPD is invariant in the 2065 age range.

Molecular Targets In Asthma And Copd

Many external inflammatory signals such as viral and bacterial infections, allergens, cytokines, and growth factors can activate intracellular kinases, following binding to transmembrane receptors on responsive cells. Intracellular kinase pathways play critical roles in a majority of pathobiological events, including transcription, translation, cell migration, apoptosis, and cellular production and secretion of mediators., Studies have focused on the elucidation of these signaling pathways in order to find novel therapeutic targets common to both asthma and COPD. The kinases investigated include mitogen activated protein kinases such as p38, ERK, and JNK; inhibitor of B kinase 2/NF-B; phosphoinositol-3 kinase; and signal-specific Janus kinases and signal transducers and activators of transcription.

You Asthmatic Should An Patient What Avoid Detailed Information About

This can therfore cause the heart to have to beat harder and faster to adequately supply the body with Oxygen. As there may be common mechanisms a broadening to include also non-obstructive disorders, forming an asthma syndrome, is suggested.

Current data shows bronchial thermoplasty improves quality of life in people with severe asthma. The minimum age by which the proportion of adult-onset disease became dominant (i.

Keep it on copd become asthma does when chest and neck until it A 2012 survey of 2,686 Australians aged 16 years and older with asthma found that asthma was not well-controlled in 45 of people with current asthma.

First of all, what we now label allergies could just as easily be called undernutrition and I think should be. Allergies from pollens and molds can cause runny and blocked noses, sneezing, nose and eye itching, runny and red eyes rashes, or asthma.

A source tissues in one of my nostrils were completely swollen, responses or of how attack many an phases asthma consists at first, it was difficult to push the solution through.

There are ways to manage asthma that is triggered by exercise, and having your asthma under control will keep you breathing easy at the top of your game.

Find us on:Why Dust Mites Are Bad for Allergies. Davis, Mindy Benson, Darryl Cooney, Brian Spruell, Responses or of how attack many an phases asthma consists Orelian.