Why Do I Keep Getting Bronchitis?
Many people with chronic lung diseases find themselves getting bronchitis winter after winter. There are a few reasons why this may be: For starters, bacteria thrives in warm, moist and dark places, like your lungs and airways. In addition, if you are taking certain medications, like steroids, your immune system may be suppressed, causing you to be more prone to infections and making it more difficult for them to clear up.
Here are a few things you can do to help prevent infections in the first place:
- Wash your hands. Warm, soapy water goes a long way to get rid of bacteria.
- If you are prescribed an antibiotic, make sure to take it all even if you are feeling better.
- See your doctor if your symptoms worsen – don’t wait. An ER visit costs much more than a trip to your primary care doctor.
- Stop smoking.
- Keep all of your respiratory equipment clean. This includes your spacer, peak flow meter, CPAP/BiPAP supplies, and/or nebulizer kits. You should always stick to a regular cleaning schedule for your equipment, but you should clean it even more often if you’re sick. If you have questions about keeping your equipment clean, give us a call at 1-800-220-1990 and we can help.
- Stay well hydrated. Most of us don’t feel the need to drink as much water as we do in the summer, but it’s equally important in winter, as it helps thin your lung secretions so they are easier to cough out.
While these things may not be enough to keep bronchitis from recurring, they might be able to help lessen your symptoms and the length of your illness.
Pulmonary Hypertension
Pulmonary hypertension occurs when the lung’s arteries have an elevated blood pressure. The function of your lungs is to diffuse oxygen into your bloodstream with each inspiration, and allow carbon dioxide to diffuse out with exhalation. When an individual has pulmonary hypertension, the heart has difficulty pumping blood through the lungs to carry oxygen and carbon dioxide. Instead of having high blood pressure throughout the body, individuals with pulmonary hypertension may only have high blood pressure in their lungs.
Pulmonary hypertension affects women more often than men, and often exists with another disease. For example, if you have pulmonary hypertension you are more likely to have another disease such as COPD. Individuals with pulmonary hypertension often feel tired, become short of breath while performing daily tasks, and complain of chest discomfort.
Lab studies have shown that smoking causes pulmonary hypertension in animals, but a link between smoking and pulmonary hypertension in humans isn’t as clear. Smoking can increase the risk of developing pulmonary hypertension, and it is a disorder commonly seen in people with lung disease, but the exact pathology of how smoking causes pulmonary hypertension isn’t understood.
There is no cure for pulmonary hypertension, so patients with the disease often focus on symptom management and lifestyle changes, such as following a healthy diet, exercise, and quitting smoking.
1. National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. (2011). What is pulmonary hypertension? Retrieved from https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/pulmonary-hypertension.
2. Schiess, R., Senn, O., Fischler, M., Huber, L. C., Vantandaslar, S., Speich, R., Ulrich, S. (2010). Tobacco smoke: A risk factor for pulmonary arterial hypertension? A case-control study. Chest, 138(5): 1086-1092.
Making it Through the Holidays with Lung Disease
A recent trip to a local craft shop took my breath away, literally. As someone with asthma and eczema, the strong smells of spiced and scented decorations triggered both conditions. My throat felt tight, I started coughing, and my face and eyes were itchy. That experience inspired me to write this post. While the holiday season is filled with many wonderful smells– they aren’t always a good thing.
If you have lung disease, well-controlled or otherwise, here are some tips to navigate the holidays:
- Take your rescue inhaler with you. This should be automatic for you anyway, but it’s especially necessary this time of year. If you’re like me and haven’t had the need for one, be prepared to leave wherever you are if you start to feel symptomatic.
- If visiting folks you don’t know well or haven’t seen for a while, ask them if anyone smokes or if they have a pet whose dander will cause a reaction. I had to leave a party after only 20 minutes due to a severe reaction to the family cat. Leaving and wheezing was bad enough, but it took a full 24 hours for my lungs to feel recovered. I’ve never been back. If you have chronic lung disease, things that seem negligible to others may cause a reaction severe enough to send you to the ER. Either stay away or use your rescue inhaler before you go and be prepared to leave.
- Watch your carb intake, including alcohol. I know it’s tough, but carbohydrates increase the amount of carbon dioxide in your body. If you have COPD, you already have issues exhaling CO2 and adding a significant amount will only make you more short of breath.
- Try eating smaller portions. Filling your stomach will push up your diaphragm and make it more difficult to take a deep breath. I know it’s hard, but it won’t be much fun if you keep reaching for your inhaler or have to turn your oxygen up.
- If you’re on oxygen, bring enough! Don’t depend on a power source. Things happen, so bring at least enough for your trip to and back. This is especially important for those of you on higher liter flows (above 2lpm).
- Know your limits. Rest when you need to. Everything will get done. Remember, it’s not a sprint, it’s a marathon.
Here’s wishing you a (relatively) full belly, a full set of lungs and a heart filled with peace, gratitude and joy for this holiday season.
Quitting During the Holidays
Congratulations on quitting tobacco! Whether you have been smoke-free or chew-free for days, weeks, months, or years, the holiday season can jeopardize your success. The stress of the season is enough to have a former smoker return to their old habits, but below are some simple steps you can take to help you make it through the holidays tobacco-free.
- Plan for Stress. The holidays can be a fun time, but managing your schedule, your budget, and awkward social encounters are aspects that can turn you into Ebenezer Scrooge. Think about previous holiday seasons, and make a list of the issues that have caused you stress. Then consider how you could handle those stressful situations if and when they occur again. For example, if your budget is tight around the holidays but you have time to create thoughtful gifts, allow for some extra planning for less expensive homemade gifts. When stressful situations do occur, ask yourself, “what would a non-smoker would do to handle the stress?” Take a walk, practice deep breathing, or talk to someone instead of lapsing.
- Manage Expectations. You may be hoping that everyone in your family can get through the holiday dinner without an argument, but if you’ve been unable to avoid it for the last four years, what makes you think that this year will be different? Change your frame of mind to expect the holiday dinner to turn south by expecting the worst and hoping for the best. This will help you manage disappointment through the holidays. You can still stay positive with this approach, but you will be prepared for the situation at hand.
- Prep your Support Team. For many people the holidays are an incredibly lonely time. Who will you call if you need a pep talk, instead of grabbing your cigarettes or chew? Let your support team know that the holidays may be a difficult time for you to make it through tobacco-free. Have a buddy system at holiday parties so that a few drinks don’t spiral into tobacco use.
For more information on quitting and managing your cravings, call HealthyLungs at 1-800-220-1990.
Lung Cancer
If I asked you what the number one cancer killer of women is, would you be surprised that it isn’t breast cancer? In 2015, it is estimated that 71,660 women will die of lung cancer2. Compare that to the 2015 estimated breast cancer death rate of 40,290 women1. Though more women are diagnosed with breast cancer, more people die annually of lung cancer than cancer of the colon, breast, and prostate combined2. Lung cancer accounts for 13% of all new cancer diagnoses, with an estimated 105,590 new cases among women in 20152.
When you consider the statistics, you have to wonder why more isn’t done to save lives and prevent new cases of lung cancer. The sad truth is that lung cancer is a stigmatized disease. When a lung cancer patient shares their diagnosis, the common response is, “Did you smoke?” When diagnosed with any other cancer, words of compassion and support are shared. The fact is that smoking and lung cancer are so closely aligned, that it is easy to blame a victim for what’s considered a self-inflicted disease. But did you know that not all lung cancer is caused by smoking, and that non-smokers can develop it as well? In fact, environmental exposure to radon gas is an increases the risk of developing lung cancer5.
Let’s stop blaming the victim and focus on prevention. The fact is that most smokers become addicted to tobacco when they are children. For example, 90% of cigarette smokers first tried smoking by age 184. Knowing the impact that breast cancer foundations have in raising awareness and funds gives me hope for future awareness and research development for lung disease. Perhaps when we stop playing the blame game and focus on eradicating disease, we can stop lung cancer for good.
- American Cancer Society. (2015, June 10). What are the key statistics about breast cancer?
- American Cancer Society. (2015, March 4). What are the key statistics about lung cancer? Retrieved from https://www.cancer.org/
- American Cancer Society. (2013, February 28). Study links smoking and breast cancer rate.
SIDS Awareness Month
Occasionally you will hear the news cover a story in which an infant dies unexpectedly, and you may wonder, how can something like that happen? Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) is a condition that occurs when an infant less than one year of age dies unexpectedly and with no determined cause, even after an autopsy is performed. SIDS is one type of sudden unexplained infant death (SUID), which can only be determined when an examination of the scene, autopsy, and review of the infant’s medical record is completed.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention cite nearly 3,500 unexpected infant deaths annually, with 1,500 of them classified as SIDS. Even though no direct cause is found when an infant dies of SIDS, there are known factors which contribute to SIDS occurring. For example, smoking during pregnancy and an infants’ secondhand smoke exposure after birth increase the risk of SIDS. Many SIDS cases are actually accidental suffocation or strangulation. Infants primarily breathe through their noses, but when their nasal passages and mouth become blocked, they do not have the ability pull their faces away and gasp like older children and adults do.
October is SIDS awareness month. To help reduce the risk of SIDS, put your baby on their back when you lay them down to sleep, and remove extra loose bedding, plush bumper pads, and pillows that could block their airway. As inviting as it may be to let your child sleep in your bed, it should be avoided because you could easily accidentally smother your child. Do not smoke during pregnancy and do not expose children to secondhand smoke. For more information on quitting smoking, contact HealthyLungs at 1-800-220-1990.
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2015, September 28). Parents and caregivers.
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2014, November 24). Health effects of secondhand smoke. Retrieved from https://www.cessationcenter.org/champix.htm.
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2015,September 28). Sudden unexpected infant death and sudden infant death syndrome.
Inhalers in School
At the start of each school year we are consumed with medical paperwork – physical forms, immunization forms, medication forms and emergency contact forms. You may be wondering why they’re important.
Working directly with school nurses as an asthma educator, I can’t tell you the countless times I hear that a student has no forms and does not have the proper medication in school to treat their asthma. These are not the students who occasionally, if ever, visit the nurse’s office with a mild asthma exasperation. These are the students who have constant breathing issues and spend a majority of the school year seeking help from the school nurse.
The state of Pennsylvania’s Act 187 states that: “In order to ensure that a child has his or her asthma medication immediately available when an asthma attack occurs, Pennsylvania schools are required to develop a written policy that allows school aged children to carry (possess) and use (self-administer) their asthma medication.” This means that state laws allow children to carry their own inhaler if they demonstrate the ability to use the inhaler and behave responsibly when using the inhaler. However, it’s vital that children let the nurse know when they are using their inhaler and if their symptoms are worsening so they can monitor the situation.
If a child starts having breathing issues, but doesn’t have their inhaler or their updated medical paperwork, the students have nothing with them to reverse the problem.
Short-acting medications reverse asthma symptoms in three to five minutes. Being able to easily use their prescribed inhaler dosage and following their asthma action plan can send the child back to class to finish the day rather quickly. Not having access to their inhaler can turn an easy fix into a 911 call, causing the exasperation to worsen, putting the student in an ambulance and looking to a future hospital stay.
Asthma is one of the top reasons for absenteeism in school settings. A simple fix is to equip the student or school nurse with the proper tools to treat the asthma. So this year when all the forms come pouring in, remember that a simple act of proper preparation keeps your child from a situation that could lead to hospitalization.
Back to School with a Circle of Care for Your Child with Asthma
At the top of your list of must dos for another successful school year should be preparing support for the management of your child’s asthma.
The whole process is much easier if the roles and responsibilities are defined for your asthma doctor, the school nurse, teachers, bus drivers, and of course, for you and your child.
Establishing a good network of care will help ensure your child’s safety, as well as encourage them to participate in all aspects of the new school year. Included in that network should be the school nurse, teachers, bus drivers, and anyone else you and the school nurse decide on.
You and your child need to complete an Asthma Action Profile verifying what you do and don’t know about your child’s asthma. It is important your child be included in establishing a current asthma record because you won’t always be there when they need help.
Next, meet with your physician, so you and your child can discuss and create an Asthma Action Plan. This plan should cover medications used at home and school, their purpose and dosage, and what to do if your child has an asthma attack at school. Make a copy of the one-page asthma record for the school nurse. Also, remember to provide current contact information and the needed medication for the school nurse office.
Meet with your school nurse and discuss what information should be shared with teachers and bus drivers. Your school nurse can determine the best way to share this information.
Having everyone on the same page will help support your efforts in keeping your child healthy, in school and ready to learn.
For additional information call 1-800-220-1990. You can also contact HealthyLungs to request a Student Asthma Kit which includes a free peak flow meter, spacer and an Asthma Action Profile.
Asthma Beyond High School…a Blueprint for Transition
Your last year of high school is a mixture of joy, anticipation, and even a little anxiety for both your parents and yourself about the future. HealthyLungs can help high school students explore what to consider as you start this important transition from high school into a job, trade school or university.
You’ve probably been supported in your asthma management by your doctors, school nurses and teachers, and your parents throughout your school career, so you might be surprised how much needs to be considered to prepare you for independent living and proper asthma management.
Once you’ve decided where you’re going after graduation, you’ll need to start preparing to care for your asthma. Get started with this list:
- Talk with your parents or caregivers about your asthma management.
- Start ordering and picking up your prescription on your own to get comfortable.
- Become familiar with your insurance including what’s covered and what phrases like “in-network” mean and how they may impact your healthcare.
- Decide if you can still work with your current doctor for your asthma care. If you’re relocating, ask for a referral from your doctor and to have your records transferred to continue to receive the same level of care.
- If you don’t have an asthma action plan, ask your doctor to help you get started.
- Talk to your pharmacist to familiarize yourself with your medication, including names and purposes for each. If you’re relocating, your pharmacist can help you transfer your prescriptions.
It’s a lot to take in and it can be over whelming if you wait until the first day of the new job or school. Start now so that along with planning your future career, you can make sure you’re also ready to manage your asthma health. Taking these steps early can help secure a healthy and successful transition out of high school.
HealthyLungs can help get you started with a Student Asthma Kit that includes an Asthma Action Profile, to record how to properly manage your asthma, a free peak flow meter and spacer.
If you would like a Strategize and Be Asthma-Wize checklist to help prepare for this important transition or to talk with someone on how to get started, call HealthyLungs at 1-800-220-1990 and ask for Jeannie Simms or Jessica Schuman, or visit our web page to request a free Student Asthma Kit.
Signs of a COPD Exacerbation
Knowing the signs of a COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease) exacerbation can be crucial in managing COPD. Whether you have COPD or you’re caring for someone with COPD, recognizing the signs of an exacerbation will allow you to seek the necessary treatment to keep the symptoms from worsening or causing more damage to the lungs.
COPD exacerbations can be caused by a number of things such as lung irritants, viral or bacterial infections, extreme temperatures and allergies.
Signs of a COPD exacerbation include:
- Shortness of breath, especially if not performing any physical activity
- Trouble speaking
- Rapid heartbeat
- Confusion
- Fever
- Increase or changes in color of mucus production
- Blue-tinged fingers or lips
- Inability to get the usual relief from medicine
- Noisy breathing, including wheezing or rattling
- Anxiety
- Difficultly sleeping or eating
- Increase in coughing
If you notice any of these symptoms, follow your doctor’s care plan. If your symptoms are severe, getting worse or you don’t have care plan in place, seek immediate medical attention.