How is COPD diagnosed?
A test called spirometry is often done to confirm the diagnosis. This test measures how much air you can blow into a machine. A value is calculated of the amount of air you can blow out in one second divided by the total amount of air you blow out. A low value indicates that you have narrowed airways. A low value combined with the typical symptoms of COPD usually confirms the diagnosis.
What is the progression and outlook of COPD?
Symptoms usually begin in people aged over 40 who have smoked for 20 years or more. A 'smokers cough' tends to develop at first. Once symptoms start, if you continue to smoke, there is usually a gradual decline over several years. You tend to become more and more breathless. Chest infections tend to become more frequent as time goes by. A flare-up of of symptoms (exacerbation) occurs from time to time, typically during a chest infection.
As the disease becomes more severe, not enough oxygen may get into the lungs through the narrowed airways. As a result, the amount of oxygen that gets into the bloodstream is less than normal. This can cause heart failure as the heart needs a good oxygen supply.
At least 25,000 people die each year in the UK from the end stages of COPD. Many of these people have several years of ill health and poor quality of life before they die. Chronic ill health and death due to COPD is preventable in most cases (see below).
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