Contents:
- Medical Video: What Causes Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)? – Manipal Hospital
- Actually, what happens when I'm short of breath?
- What are the causes of shortness of breath?
- 1. Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
- 2. Asthma
- 3. Pneumonia
- 4. Interstitial lung disease
- 5. Pulmonary embolism
- 6. Congestive heart failure
Medical Video: What Causes Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)? – Manipal Hospital
In fact, the body breathes around 6 liters of air every minute. Without air, of course many body functions will experience interference. Therefore, shortness of breath can have a negative impact on health. Shortness of breath can also be a sign that you are experiencing an illness. Then what are some diseases that can be causes of shortness of breath?
Actually, what happens when I'm short of breath?
Shortness of breath occurs when the body lacks air. This condition can come in two forms, namely chronic and acute. Both are distinguished by the duration and severity of symptoms that appear.
Acute shortness of breath will occur suddenly and can be severe immediately. While the condition of chronic shortness of breath will appear slowly and gradually, even taking a long time.
What are the causes of shortness of breath?
The most common cause of shortness of breath is due to impaired pulmonary or heart function. However, it does not rule out if these symptoms arise due to other health problems or due to the use of certain drugs.
Even so, the following are the causes of shortness of breath that occur most often and you should be aware of.
1. Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
The first cause of shortness of breath is chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). People with COPD will generally experience symptoms of chronic and acute shortness of breath.
Actually, this disease occurs due to the air sacs in the lungs being damaged, so that the lungs have difficulty taking air and eventually shortness of breath occurs.
COPD is more common in people over 40 years and has been an active smoker.
2. Asthma
Asthma is another common cause of shortness of breath. This disease occurs when the respiratory tract becomes inflamed until it swells and produces excessive mucus. This condition then causes symptoms of shortness of breath.
Allergies can also be one cause of shortness of breath in people with asthma. While other things that can cause asthma attacks appear are weather changes to excessive exercise.
3. Pneumonia
Pneumonia is a disease that occurs when one or both parts of the lungs become inflamed due to bacteria, viruses, or fungi. Foreign substances that cause infection will invade the air sacs which make the body deprived of air until finally shortness of breath.
This infection also usually causes the air sacs in the lungs to swell and expel pus. The greater the swelling that occurs, the more severe the symptoms of shortness of breath will be experienced.
People with pneumonia will usually experience acute or chronic shortness of breath.
4. Interstitial lung disease
Interstitial lung disease is a group of diseases that attack lung tissue. This health disorder is characterized by the appearance of scar tissue in the pulmonary sac, making the air storage space smaller.
Finally, the oxygen that has entered the lungs will be difficult to flow into the blood. This then causes shortness of breath.
5. Pulmonary embolism
Pulmonary embolism is a disease that occurs due to blockage of arteries in the lungs. This blockage can arise due to various things, such as pregnancy, obesity, and cancer.
Clogged blood flow makes oxygen unable to flow throughout the body, so the body lacks air. This then causes symptoms of shortness of breath.
6. Congestive heart failure
Not only interference with lung function, problems in the heart organ can be the cause of shortness of breath. One of them is congestive heart failure.
This disease is caused by narrowing or blockage that occurs in the coronary arteries. This narrowed blood vessel makes the bloodstream carrying oxygen not smooth.
Finally, other body tissues do not get oxygen, giving rise to several symptoms such as shortness of breath, fatigue, out of focus, and buildup of fluid in the organ.
Not infrequently heart and lung function disorders appear together, making the symptoms of asthma worse. If you experience shortness of breath, you should not panic and immediately visit the nearest health service to get help.
Most of the causes of shortness of breath are experienced by adults. While the most common cause of shortness of breath in children is due to respiratory infections. To find out the exact cause, it's better to consult a doctor.
