Definition: Your respiratory system is the network of organs and tissues that help you breathe. This system helps your body absorb oxygen
from the air so your organs can work. It also cleans waste gases, such as carbon dioxide, from your blood.
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is the name for a
group of lung conditions that cause breathing difficulties.
Symptoms: Weight loss, wheezing a persistent chesty cough with phlegm that does not go away.
Treatment: Bronchodilators are medicines that make breathing easier by relaxing and widening your airways.
Asthma is a condition in which your airways narrow and swell and may produce extra mucus.
Symptoms of Asthma: a whistling sound when breathing (wheezing) Breathlessness, a tight chest, which may feel like a band is tightening
around it, coughing
Treatment: Asthma is usually treated by using an inhaler, a small device that lets you breathe in medicines.
Pneumonia is an infection in one or both lungs. Bacteria, viruses, and fungi cause it. The infection causes
inflammation in the air sacs in your lungs, which are called alveoli. The alveoli fill with fluid or pus, making it
difficult to breathe.
Symptoms include: Loss of appetite, rapid heartbeat, chest pain, a cough, difficulty breathing
Treatment: Main treatment for pneumonia is antibiotics, along with rest and drinking plenty of water. If you have chest pain, you can take
pain killers such as paracetamol.
from the air so your organs can work. It also cleans waste gases, such as carbon dioxide, from your blood.
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is the name for a
group of lung conditions that cause breathing difficulties.
Symptoms: Weight loss, wheezing a persistent chesty cough with phlegm that does not go away.
Treatment: Bronchodilators are medicines that make breathing easier by relaxing and widening your airways.
Asthma is a condition in which your airways narrow and swell and may produce extra mucus.
Symptoms of Asthma: a whistling sound when breathing (wheezing) Breathlessness, a tight chest, which may feel like a band is tightening
around it, coughing
Treatment: Asthma is usually treated by using an inhaler, a small device that lets you breathe in medicines.
Pneumonia is an infection in one or both lungs. Bacteria, viruses, and fungi cause it. The infection causes
inflammation in the air sacs in your lungs, which are called alveoli. The alveoli fill with fluid or pus, making it
difficult to breathe.
Symptoms include: Loss of appetite, rapid heartbeat, chest pain, a cough, difficulty breathing
Treatment: Main treatment for pneumonia is antibiotics, along with rest and drinking plenty of water. If you have chest pain, you can take
pain killers such as paracetamol.
