0000000000514374
AUTHOR
C. Sorino
Mechanisms in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: comparisons with asthma
The mechanisms underlying the pathogenesis and pathophysiology of COPD are complex and have been largely studied; however, the underlying factors are not completely understood. Chronic airway inflammation is a key characteristic of COPD and specific inflammatory abnormalities exist even in the airways of subjects with mild and asymptomatic clinical patterns. In addressing these mechanisms, a comparison with asthma becomes fundamental, since the latter shows clinical and functional aspects that overlap with those observed in COPD. The mechanisms of inflammation in COPD, and their similarities and differences with asthma are therefore discussed in this article. The diagnosis of chronic obstru…
Spirometric criteria to diagnose airway obstruction in the elderly: fixed ratio vs. lower limit of normal.
COPD is the most common chronic lung disease. It becomes more prevalent with increasing age but remains under-diagnosed in the elderly. A heated debate concerns the most suitable way to diagnose airway obstruction in this age group. Most COPD guidelines recommend to use a FEV1/FVC of 0.70 as threshold to define an obstructive ventilatory defect. While the use of a 0.70 ratio may be simple, it may result in under-diagnosis of airflow obstruction in young people and over-diagnosis in the elderly due to an age-related decline in pulmonary volumes, especially in FEV1. This might lead to unnecessary use of medications and increased risk of adverse effects. A proposed strategy for reducing the mi…
• Role of counseling in tobacco smoking cessation
• Role of counseling in tobacco smoking cessation