Symptoms

Early symptoms include:

• Coughing in the morning
• Coughing up clear sputum (mucus from deep in the lungs)
• Wheezing
• Shortness of breath with activity

As the disease progresses, you may experience:

• Increased shortness of breath
• Rapid breathing
• Choking sensation when lying flat (may need to prop up with many pillows or even sleep in a chair)
• Fatigue
• Trouble concentrating
• Increase in chest size (barrel chest)
• Increased risk of serious lung infections
• Enlargement of the right chamber of the heart
• Heart failure
• Coughing up thick and/or bloody mucus
• Swelling in the legs
• Weight loss
• Breathing through pursed lips
• Desire to lean forward to improve breathing
• More frequent flare-ups (periods of more severe symptoms)

Diagnosis

The doctor will ask about your symptoms and medical history. A physical exam will be performed.

Tests may include:

• Chest x-ray —a test that uses radiation to take pictures of structures inside the chest
• CT Scan —a type of x-ray that uses a computer to make pictures of structures inside the chest
• Arterial blood gas test—a blood test to assess the amount of oxygen and carbon dioxide in the blood
• Lung function tests (spirometry)

Normal Lung vs Emphysemic Lung

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