COPD -- The Diagnosis and What It Means...

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COPD -- The Diagnosis and What It Means...

Copd can be- and alas- often is mistaken for a number of other ailments, particularly asthma.

The symptoms of COPD and asthma are similar, though with important differences, in fact, the courses of treatment use some of the same medications.

But the proper treatment for COPD differs in important ways from the proper treatment of asthma.

That's why getting a correct diagnosis is so important.Your Doctor should take a full medical history from you that covers any symptoms you have, your family history, and exposure to chemicals, dust or other pollutants that are known to cause COPD. Then your Doctor should perform the appropriate tests, to rule out health issues and confirm the presence of COPD.

Many things can make you feel short of breath. COPD is just one of them. Your Doctor should run or order several tests to rule out other causes and confirm the presence of COPD. Most of these tests are noninvasive and easy to perform.Some,like spirometry, may be performed right in your Doctors’ office. Others may have to be done at a separate lab, hospital or imaging facility.

Spirometry is a simple test that provides your Doctor with a wealth of information about your lung function and, indeed, many other aspects of your health. Even though it’s a lung test, abnormal results can indicate problems with your heart or circulatory system.

Although spirometry can detect several different health issues, COPD gives characteristic readings that are different from other diseases like asthma. When you have COPD , your FVC(the total amount of air you exhale is lower, and so is the amount of air  you can exhale in 1 second. The real identifier is the ratio or how much air you exhale in the first second as a percentage of the total amount of air you exhale.In healthy lungs, between 70 percent and 75 percent of all the air exhaled is exhaled in the first second.

Even if you don’t have trouble breathing , you may consider having a spirometry test if you’re a current or former smoker and you’re 44 or older. You should ask your Doctor about it if you have a family history of COPD or long term exposure to pollution or irritants.

On a final note, chest x-rays aren’t terribly good as a diagnostic tool for copd unless the disease is fairly advanced. However, your Doctor may order one to help him rule out other diseases. 

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