- January 22, 2025
COPD is ranked 4th among the most common causes of death. In Poland, as a result of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, 17 thousand people die every year, which gives two people per hour. Only a quarter of the people affected are diagnosed.
-Symptoms that should absolutely worry us and make us go to the doctor include coughing, shortness of breath, expectoration of secretions, quick feeling of fatigue or difficulty in moving around. These symptoms can be associated with asthma or emphysema, but they can also mean a very serious illness such as COPD. - says newsrm.tv Anna Zmyj, a spirometry nurse.
A big problem is the lack of public awareness of the disease, what symptoms it causes and when to see a doctor. Only 25% of patients know what they suffer from and how to deal with it.
The Polish Lung Campaign aims to raise public awareness of COPD and to help diagnose sick people. Within its framework, tourists and residents of Kolobrzeg could examine the condition of their lungs by taking part in free spirometry tests.
- The main cause of COPD is smoking, both active and passive. A very high percentage of people who have been tested are smokers. In these patients the results were much worse. For example, a 60-year-old patient had a 97-year-old lung. - adds Anna Zmyj.
Not without significance are also external factors, e.g. environmental pollution, or the performance of certain professions, such as a car painter or painter. The age of patients is also important, as COPD affects mainly middle- and elderly people.
