Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease

Running Head: COPD
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COPD
student
8/13/2019

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Table of Contents
Introduction.................................................................................................................... 2
Causes....................................................................................................................... 3
Pathophysiology........................................................................................................... 3
Impacts of the disease on the individual and family/carer.........................................................3
Heath promotions in COPD............................................................................................. 7
Cultural safety and cultural literacy................................................................................... 8
Conclusion..................................................................................................................... 9
Reference.................................................................................................................... 10

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Introduction
The chronic obstructive pulmonary disease also abbreviated as COPD is the chronic
inflammatory diseases of lungs that cause disruptive airflow form the patient's lungs. It is the
group of cumulative lung diseases such as emphysema and long-lasting bronchitis. Emphysema
slowly damages the air sacs in the lungs and bronchitis leads to inflammation and contraction of
the bronchial ducts (McCarthy et al., 2015). The global burden of this health issues study reports
the prevalence of nearly 251 million cases of COPD worldwide in 2016. It is estimated that
nearly 3.17 million people died due to this health issue in 2015. In the coming few years the
burden of this disease will be increased because of increased smoking prevalence and ageing
populace in different countries. Therefore management and avoidance of this disease is essential
and must get the attention of government officials from the entire world (Puhan et al., 2016). In
this particular essay the main causes, pathophysiology, and how to help the individuals with
these issues will be discussed in addition to the role of community nurses. The impacts of the
disease on the family, health promotion, cultural safety and empowerment will also be
mentioned in this essay.
Description
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease is a lung disorder that is described by a persistent
decrease of airflow. The symptoms of this health condition are increasingly worsening and
tenacious breathlessness on exertion ultimately results in breathing issues at rest. It tends to be
underdiagnosed and thus can be life threatening (Puhan et al., 2016).

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Causes
The main causes of COPD are cigarette smoking, second-hand smoke, pollution and
fumes, asthma and genes. Some of the risk factors associated with this health issue include age
(people older than 40 years are at high risk), respiratory infection, and certain jobs that put the
person around dust, and chemical fumes (Puhan et al., 2016).
Pathophysiology
To understand the pathophysiology of this disorder it is essential to know lung structure.
When people inhale the air moves to the trachea and later through bronchi out into the
individual's bronchioles. Tiny blood vessels called Alveoli are present on the end of the
bronchioles through which the oxygen moves from lungs to the bloodstream, In return, the CO2
moves from the blood into body's capillaries and later into both lungs before the exhalation.
Emphysema is the disorder of alveoli in which the fibres that form the alveoli wall become
impaired. The impairment or damage causes them less elastic and incapable to recoil when
people exhale, making it difficult to exhale the CO2 out of the patient's lungs. If inflammation
happens in the lungs, this leads to bronchitis with the consequent mucus formation. If this
bronchitis continues, the patient may develop chronic bronchitis. The patient can also develop
temporary bouts of acute bronchitis, however, these episodes are not recognised as the same as
COPD (Hogg, Paré & Hackett, 2017).
Impacts of the disease on the individual and family/carer
On individual
The individuals develop this health can experience both physical and mental symptoms.
Some of the physical symptoms of this health issue include shortness of breath, particularly