Emphysema - Treatments - Better Medicine

How is emphysema treated?

Treatment for emphysema begins with seeking medical care from your health care provider. The goal of treatment is to improve breathing. Severe cases not responding to therapy or accompanied by serious bleeding may require surgical resection, or, in rare cases, lung transplant.

Treatment options for emphysema

There are several treatment options for emphysema including:

Bronchodilators to open the airways, such as albuterol (ProAir, Proventil, Ventolin), levalbuterol (Xopenex), and pirbuterol (Maxair)
Chest physical therapy (CPT) to help you cough up sputum
Inhaled corticosteroids, such as Budesonide (Pulmicort Flexhaler, Pulmicort Respules), flunisolide (Aerobid Aerosol), fluticasone propionate (Flovent HFA), and triamcinolone acetonide (Azmacort Inhalation Aerosol)
Medication to help with smoking cessation, such as varenicline (Chantix) or bupropion hydrochloride (Zyban)
Oxygen therapy if you have low blood oxygen levels
Pulmonary rehabilitation to improve shortness of breath with coughing and breathing exercises

What you can do to improve your emphysema

In addition to reducing your exposure to emphysema triggers, you can prevent or limit emphysema by:

Avoiding cold air
Drinking plenty of fluids
Getting plenty of rest
Removing irritants in your home, such as fireplace fumes and smoke
Taking all medications as prescribed

What are the potential complications of emphysema?

Complications of untreated or poorly controlled emphysema can be serious, even life threatening in some cases. You can help minimize your risk of serious complications by following the treatment plan you and your health care professional design specifically for you. Complications of emphysema include:

Collapsed lung
Cor pulmonale (failure of the right side of the heart)
Pneumonia
Respiratory failure

References:

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. PubMed Health. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0001153/. Accessed June 2, 2011.

Emphysema. American Lung Association. http://www.lungusa.org/lung-disease/emphysema/. Accessed June 2, 2011.

INTRODUCTION

What is emphysema?

Emphysema is a form of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) that causes destruction of the air sacs in the lungs, resulting in reduced lung capacity and difficulty breathing. Emphysema is a common respiratory disorder in the United States: about 3.7 million people in the United States have been diagnosed with it. Peop... Read more about emphysema introduction

SYMPTOMS

What are the symptoms of emphysema?

The primary symptom of emphysema is shortness of breath, which may or may not be accompanied by other symptoms.... Read more about emphysema symptoms

CAUSES

What causes emphysema?

Emphysema is a form of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) that causes destruction of the air sacs of the lungs, resulting in reduced lung capacity and difficulty breathing. The most common cause of emphysema is smoking. Rarely, nonsmokers develop emphysema as the result of an inherited deficiency in alpha-1 antitrypsin, a protein made in the liver that helps protect the lung tissue.... Read more about emphysema causes