 although a direct association between secondhand smoke and lower respiratory disease has been documented by the Environmental Protection Agency, about 75 percent of middle school and high school students report exposure to secondhand smoke. Quitting smoking is the single most effective way to reduce the risk of CLRD and its progression.
Air quality: The air quality in the Tri-State region generally doesn't meet federal quality standards and worsens diseases like asthma, chronic bronchitis and emphysema. Long‐term exposure to irritants such as dust, fumes and other pollutants may trigger or worsen lung disease.
Other risk factors: The relationship between coal mining and obstructive lung disease has long been recognized. That exposure to vapors, gases, dust or fumes on the job can also cause COPD independently of cigarette smoking and increase the risk and severity of disease among smokers is also well documented. A study by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) found COPD to occur more frequently in certain other industries, including rubber, plastic, and leather manufacturing, utilities, and office building services (laborers, cleaners, material handlers and maintenance workers).
Because people in West Virginia and the Tri-State community are more likely to experience lung problems and lung disease, Cabell Huntington Hospital, the Edwards Comprehensive Cancer Center and the Marshall University Joan C. Edwards School of Medicine have established several programs for diagnosing and treating lung disease, including the Center for Lung Health, the Multidisciplinary Lung Cancer Program, the Comprehensive Lung Nodule Program and they recruit physicians trained in emerging specialties like interventional pulmonology for evaluating and treating lung disease.
Chronic Bronchitis. The Merck Manual of Geriatrics defines chronic bronchitis as “characterized by a productive cough occurring most days of the month for at least three months of the year for two consecutive years.” In chronic bronchitis, there is persistent inflammation and eventual scarring of the bronchial tubes. The inflammation causes excessive production of mucus and swelling of the bronchial walls. The chief cause of chronic bronchitis, however, is cigarette smoking, including exposure to secondhand smoke. Chronic bronchitis is often not treated properly until it has reached an advanced stage because sufferers do not realize its seriousness until their lungs have already been damaged. By this time, the lining of the bronchial tubes has thickened due to the persistent inflammation, excess mucus is constantly being produced, there is much coughing, airflow is increasingly hampered, and respiratory infections occur with greater frequency due to the ideal breeding conditions of the bronchi. Overall, the 10‐year mortality rate following a diagnosis of chronic bronchitis is about 50 percent.
Emphysema. Emphysema is a pathological definition: abnormal permanent enlargement of the air spaces at the ends of the bronchioles, accompanied by the destruction of their walls. Most emphysema is caused by smoking. ATT, a protein produced by the liver, can be deactivated by cigarette smoke and affect the elasticity and functioning of the lungs, leading to the gradual development of emphysema. The initial symptom of emphysema is shortness of breath (dyspnea). A cough might also be present, as chronic bronchitis often precedes emphysema. As the disease progresses, even a short walk can result in difficulty in breathing.
Millions of Americans suffer from COPD so severely that the illness interferes with their daily activities, and more than half report that their COPD limits their ability to work. Nearly half report that they get short of breath while doing light housework or washing and dressing. Nearly one-third of COPD sufferers get short of breath while talking. About 25 percent of COPD patients report difficulty breathing even when sitting down or lying still and describe themselves as invalids. About half of COPD sufferers said their disease limited th