Diagnosing Emphysema: Identifying Respiratory Health Challenges

How is emphysema manifested?

Since emphysema is usually the result of a lung disease that has lasted for a long time, there are pronounced symptoms. Typical is shortness of breath, which initially only occurs under stress and later also at rest. Cough may or may not be present.

Due to the increased work of breathing, which becomes noticeable through an increased breathing rate and breathing noises, the thorax takes on a barrel-shaped form. Since there is insufficient oxygen in the blood, the patients have cyanosis (blue discolouration of the lips, nails and mucous membranes). You lose weight and muscle mass and are prone to infections.

Heart failure as a result of emphysema

The destruction of the tissue also destroys blood vessels, which increases pressure in the pulmonary circulation. The right ventricle has to pump harder, becoming thicker and thicker. At some point, the heart muscle can no longer cope with the load, becomes limp and large, and the blood backs up into the systemic circulation.

This right heart failure (cor pulmonale) leads to leg oedema, abdominal dropsy and blood congestion in the liver and stomach.

How is the diagnosis made?

In addition to the medical history and the symptoms, there are typical changes that the doctor can hear when tapping and listening to the lungs. A lung function test (spirometry) is essential not only for diagnosis but also for therapy. The inflated lungs can be easily recognized in the X-ray or a computed tomography image of the chest.