Sandhya Raghavan
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Written By: Sandhya Raghavan | Published : November 8, 2017 3:26 PM IST
Things aren't looking up for the country as far as pollution levels are concerned. Barely a month after Diwali, the nation's capital Delhi is already hitting international headlines thanks to the pollution levels reaching over ten times the safe limit. Read how the toxic smog affects your health. Breathing such toxic air is bound to cause a lot of health problems and the worst affected in this case will be people with respiratory illnesses, especially Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease or COPD. Pollution is one of the biggest causes of COPD exacerbations and flare up of the symptoms, which can understandably cause panic among patients. Pulmonologist Dr Sanjay Sobti from Apollo Hospital, Delhi lists down nine signs and symptoms of COPD exacerbations. It will be wise to seek medical attention as soon as you start seeing these symptoms.
1 Shortness of breath
One of the early signs of COPD worsening is shortness of breath. "A person experiencing a COPD exacerbation may feel breathlessness or shortage of air. If this feeling worsens even when at rest or with little physical activity, you need to see a doctor," says Dr Sobti.
2 Noisy breathing
A rattling sound while breathing should ring alarm bells. A distinct sign of your symptoms worsening is hearing a wheezing, whistling, gurgling or rattling sound while breathing. These signs are together known as Rhonchi lung sounds resulting from fluid build up in the lungs.
3 Increased anxiety
The difficulty in breathing may understandably make the patient panic, causing a possible anxiety attack and a fear of death. But this can worsen the problem even further. Dr Sobti says, "Oxygen is vital for everyone. If you feel like you are not getting enough and start to panic, the anxiety can aggravate your breathing ability as you tense up."
4 Breathing through the chest
Shallow breathing or chest breathing is drawing short breaths into the lungs, which disrupts the gas balance in the body and causes adrenaline release. When the symptoms of COPD start worsening, the patient starts breathing from the chest instead of the abdomen. "Breathing may become more irregular and the chest may move up and down more quickly."
5 Coughing
When there is an exacerbation of COPD, the patient starts coughing more severely and frequently. "It could be a dry cough or may bring up phlegm that is bloody, green or yellow," adds the doctor.
6 Changes in skin or nail colour
When breathing gets laboured, the flow of oxygen gets restricted. This causes the skin and nails to change colours. "There may be a noticeable change in colour such as a bluish tint around the lips. You may also notice blue or purple nails or the skin may take on a sallow or grey tone," Dr Sobti points out.
7 Loss of appetite and sleep
Sleep starts becoming scare in COPD patients when their conditions worsens and their appetite goes for a toss. "The increased symptoms with a COPD exacerbation may interfere with the patient's ability to eat or sleep," he adds.
8 Early morning headaches
The breathing problems results in low levels of oxygen and elevated levels of carbon dioxide in the body. "The build up of carbon dioxide in the blood can result in headaches in the morning," says the doctor.
9 Swelling in the ankles or legs and abdominal pain
"These common COPD symptoms are associated with heart complications or irregularities caused by damage to the lungs," states Dr Sobti.
With the pollution levels hitting an all time high, patients with COPD should be wary of their symptoms worsening. Timely intervention could help minimise the symptoms and reduce the associated health issues that come with COPD exacerbation. Here are some dos and don'ts of of living with COPD.
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