Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease COPD
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease COPD
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease COPD
Patients with COPD complain of coughing, wheezing, or difficulty breathing on a regular basis. It's a lung disease that affects millions of Americans. COPD can include symptoms of Asthma, emphysema and chronic bronchitis. Patients with COPD need proper diagnosis and treatment. Let us help you control your symptoms and improve your quality of life. Dr. Husari is Board certified in pulmonary medicine and has collected 30 years of clinical experience in managing patients with COPD.
Asthma
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease COPD
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease COPD
Asthma is a condition in which a patient's airways become narrowed, inflamed, and swell. The airways may produce extra mucus, which will make the airways even narrower and more difficult to breathe.
Asthma presentation is a spectrum ranging from a minor inconvenience to interfering with daily activities. In very rare instances, Asthma can lead to a life-threatening attack.
Asthma can usually be managed with rescue inhalers to relieve symptoms. More importantly, Maintainance therapy is needed to control the inflammation of the lungs and to prevent mucus plugging the airways, and controller inhalers that prevent symptoms. Severe cases may require longer-acting inhalers that keep the airways open, as well as oral steroids.
Please make sure you inform Dr. Husari and his staff of your daily symptoms and keep a list of all your medications.
Interstitial Lung Diseases
Interstitial Lung Diseases
Interstitial Lung Diseases
Interstitial Lung Disease are different diseases that will lead to progressive fibrosis of the lungs and loss of lung function. This includes but are not limited to :
- Pulmonary fibrosis
- Sarcoidosis
- Hypersensitivity pneumonitis
- Occupational lung disease
- Other disorders such as lymphangioleiomyomatosis (LAM), Langerhans cell histiocytosis (LCH) and cryptogenic organizing pneumonia (COP)
We have to treat the conditions leading to lung injury and stop the deterioration of lung function.
Coming: FAQs
Interstitial Lung Diseases
Interstitial Lung Diseases
Sleep Apnea
What is Obstructive sleep apnea
Obstructive sleep apnea is a sleep disorder in which breathing is briefly and repeatedly interrupted during sleep. The "apnea" in sleep apnea refers to a breathing pause that lasts at least ten seconds. Obstructive sleep apnea occurs when the muscles in the back of the throat fail to keep the airway open, despite efforts to breathe. Another form of sleep apnea is central sleep apnea, in which the brain fails to properly control breathing during sleep. Obstructive sleep apnea is far more common than central sleep apnea
Obstructive sleep apnea, or simply sleep apnea, can cause fragmented sleep and low blood oxygen levels. For people with sleep apnea, the combination of disturbed sleep and oxygen starvation may lead to hypertension, heart disease and mood and memory problems. Sleep apnea also increases the risk of drowsy driving.
Sleep Apnea Symptoms
Chronic snoring is a strong indicator of sleep apnea and should be evaluated by a health professional. Since people with sleep apnea tend to be sleep deprived, they may suffer from sleeplessness and a wide range of other symptoms such as difficulty concentrating, depression, irritability, sexual dysfunction, learning and memory difficulties, and falling asleep while at work, on the phone, or driving. Left untreated, symptoms of sleep apnea can include disturbed sleep, excessive sleepiness during the day, high blood pressure, heart attack, congestive heart failure, cardiac arrhythmia, stroke or depression.
What Causes Sleep Apnea?
There are a number of factors that increase risk, including having a small upper airway (or large tongue, tonsils or uvula), being overweight, having a recessed chin, small jaw or a large overbite, a large neck size (17 inches or greater in a man, or 16 inches or greater in a woman), smoking and alcohol use, being age 40 or older, and ethnicity (African-Americans, Pacific-Islanders and Hispanics). Also, OSA seems to run in some families, suggesting a possible genetic basis.
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Treatment for Sleep Apnea
If you suspect you may have sleep apnea, the first thing to do is see your doctor. Bring with you a record of your sleep, fatigue levels throughout the day, and any other symptoms you might be having. Ask your bed partner if he or she notices that you snore heavily, choke, gasp, or stop breathing during sleep. Be sure to take an updated list of medications, including over the counter medications, with you any time you visit a doctor for the first time. You may want to call your medical insurance provider to find out if a referral is needed for a visit to a sleep center.
One of the most common methods used to diagnose sleep apnea is a sleep study, which may require an overnight stay at a sleep center. The sleep study monitors a variety of functions during sleep including sleep state, eye movement, muscle activity, heart rate, respiratory effort, airflow, and blood oxygen levels. This test is used both to diagnose sleep apnea and to determine its severity. Sometimes, treatment can be started during the first night in the sleep center.
The treatment of choice for obstructive sleep apnea is continuous positive airway pressure device (CPAP). CPAP is a mask that fits over the nose and/or mouth, and gently blows air into the airway to help keep it open during sleep. This method of treatment is highly effective. Using the CPAP as recommended by your doctor is very important.
Other methods of treating sleep apnea include: dental appliances which reposition the lower jaw and tongue; upper airway surgery to remove tissue in the airway; nasal expiratory positive airway pressure where a disposable valve covers the nostrils; and treatment using hypoglossal nerve stimulation where a stimulator is implanted in the patient’s chest with leads connected to the hypoglossal nerve that controls tongue movement as well as to a breathing sensor. The sensor monitors breathing patterns during sleep and stimulates the hypoglossal nerve to move the tongue to maintain an open airway.
Lifestyle changes are effective ways of mitigating symptoms of sleep apnea. Here are some tips that may help reduce apnea severity:
- Lose weight. If you are overweight, this is the most important action you can take to cure your sleep apnea (CPAP only treats it; weight loss can cure it in the overweight person).
- Avoid alcohol; it causes frequent nighttime awakenings, and makes the upper airway breathing muscles relax.
- Quit smoking. Cigarette smoking worsens swelling in the upper airway, making apnea (and snoring) worse.
- Some patients with mild sleep apnea or heavy snoring have fewer breathing problems when they are lying on their sides instead of their backs.
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