Obstructive pulmonary disease is on rise #4

February 22, 2004

Obstructive pulmonary disease is on rise, No. 4 cause of death

By Jane Brody

Perhaps the most frightening symptom one can experience is being unable to

inhale enough air to perform even the simplest activities, like walking or even

talking. But that is the ultimate fate of millions of Americans with chronic

obstructive pulmonary disease.

The ailment -- which encompasses chronic bronchitis, emphysema and some forms of

asthma -- is now the fourth-leading cause of death of Americans and the only

major one that is on a seemingly relentless increase. In the United States, the

costs now exceed $32 billion a year.

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease is a progressive, irreversible decline in

lung function that afflicts 35 million Americans, gradually robbing them of the

ability to take in oxygen and remove carbon dioxide from their blood. Nearly

half the people who have the disease do not yet know it. Although the disorder

cannot be cured, if it is diagnosed early enough and properly treated,

deterioration in lung function can be slowed.

The disease can be detected with a simple, non-invasive breathing test.

Typical patients are so used to coughing and bringing up phlegm that it seems

natural. If they become winded climbing a flight of stairs or rushing for a bus,

they tend to blame their weight or age.

In his book, ``Life and Breath'' (Broadway Books), Dr. Neil Schachter,

pulmonologist at the Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York, calls the disease

``an equal-opportunity killer.''

The typical patient now is 45 to 64. In 2000, for the first time, the disease

killed more women than men.

Cigarette smoking accounts for 80 percent to 90 percent of cases in developed

countries. Treatment starts with eliminating exposure to the cause. For most,

that means throwing away the cigarettes.

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