COPD & Emphysema

Overview

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and emphysema are chronic lung conditions that obstruct airflow and make breathing progressively more difficult. COPD is an umbrella term for long-term diseases of the airways and lungs, and emphysema is one of its main forms, in which the walls of the air sacs in the lungs are damaged and lose their elasticity, reducing the surface available for gas exchange and trapping air in the lungs. The result is breathlessness, chronic cough, wheezing, and reduced exercise tolerance, with symptoms that tend to worsen over time. The leading cause is long-term exposure to irritants, most commonly tobacco smoke, though air pollution and occupational exposures also contribute. While the damage is not fully reversible, treatment with medications, pulmonary rehabilitation, smoking cessation, and in selected cases procedures or surgery can relieve symptoms and slow progression. Within the journal's coverage of Respiratory Diseases, related research includes work on bronchoscopic lung volume reduction using one-way valves in severe emphysema and the evaluation of comorbidities across different COPD phenotypes. This page gathers peer-reviewed, open-access research relevant to COPD, emphysema, and chronic obstructive airway disease.

Research published in this journal

2 peer-reviewed articles, ranked by relevance. Each links to its DOI.

This page summarises published research for orientation; it is not medical or professional advice.

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