Difficulty in breathing could be a sign of a serious lung disease called Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), which people tend to ignore. Medical experts say that in India, about15 million suffer from COPD and it causes four times more deaths in metro cities as compared to US and Europe.
Dr. JC Suri, chest physician, Safdarjung Hospital said, “The early symptoms of COPD are chronic cough, bringing up sputum, and breathlessness during physical activity such as exercise or walking up a flight of stairs.”
Initially people ignore these symptoms as a normal part of getting older, but these are silent killers. Therefore it should not be neglected, said the doctor.
It may be noted that, COPD is generally a progressive disease, and as the disease gets worse patients become breathless during everyday activities such as climbing a flight of stairs, walking the dog, or even getting washed and dressed in the morning.
Health officials are of the view that if you are above 35 years of age and live or work in areas where there is smoke, noxious gas/fumes, ask your doctor for simple screening test to rule out COPD.
Although there is no cure for COPD, treatments are available that alleviate symptoms of breathlessness so that patients can participate more fully in daily life, said the doctor.