Bronchiectasis is often brought on by damage from another condition that affects the lungs. Even an airway blockage, like a growth or a noncancerous tumor, can lead to bronchiectasis. Though it is most often linked to cystic fibrosis, many other conditions can trigger bronchiectasis such as: Autoimmune disease.
Bronchiectasis harms the walls of the airways. Over time, they become scarred, inflamed, and widened. They then can't clear out mucus. This damage can lead to serious lung infections and other major health problems.
Bronchiectasis is associated with several autoimmune diseases including rheumatoid arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), Sjogren's syndrome, relapsing polychondritis, and inflammatory bowel disease.
When any part of this system isn't working — if your cilia are damaged or your airways have pockets that trap mucus — you build up mucus in your lungs. The mucus has bacteria trapped in it, which can multiply and cause infections. The damage the infections causes can make bronchiectasis worse.
The damage caused to the lungs by bronchiectasis is permanent, but treatment can help relieve your symptoms and stop the damage getting worse. The main treatments include: exercises and special devices to help you clear mucus out of your lungs. medication to help improve airflow within the lungs.
Bronchiectasis can affect just one section of one of your lungs or many sections of both lungs. It can lead to serious health problems, such as respiratory failure, a collapsed lung, and heart failure.
Increasing age is recognized as an independent risk factor for bronchiectasis severity.
Living with bronchiectasis can be stressful and frustrating. However, most people with the condition have few symptoms and a normal life expectancy. For people with very severe symptoms, however, bronchiectasis can be fatal if the lungs stop working properly.
Common complications include recurrent pneumonia requiring hospitalization, empyema, lung abscess, progressive respiratory failure, and cor pulmonale. Additional complications include chronic bronchial infection, and pneumothorax. Life-threatening hemoptysis may occur but is uncommon.
Bronchiectasis complications include pneumonia, lung abscess, empyema, septicemia, cor pulmonale, respiratory failure, secondary amyloidosis with nephrotic syndrome, and recurrent pleurisy.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted Breakthrough Therapy designation to colistimethate sodium powder for nebulization solution (CMS I–neb®) for the reduction in the incidence of pulmonary exacerbations in adults with non-cystic fibrosis bronchiectasis (NCFB) colonized with P. aeruginosa.
If properly treated and monitored, most people with bronchiectasis have a normal life expectancy. People with bronchiectasis are more likely to die because of other medical conditions that affect all people (like heart disease or cancer) than to die directly from bronchiectasis.
Having fatigue doesn't mean you have very severe bronchiectasis - it can be a symptom across all stages. People who have bronchiectasis often say that fatigue can be worse when they feel an exacerbation or infection coming on. If you have recognised this, you may have found that this is an early warning sign for you.
Around 60% of bronchiectasis diagnoses are made in people aged over 70. Being diagnosed with the condition is more likely as you get older, between the ages of 30 and 70.
Shortness of breath that gets worse during flare-ups. Fatigue, feeling run-down or tired. Fevers and/or chills. Wheezing or whistling sound while you breathe.
The most common symptom of bronchiectasis is a persistent cough that brings up a large amount of phlegm on a daily basis. The phlegm can be clear, pale yellow or yellow-greenish in colour. Some people may only occasionally cough up small amounts of phlegm, or none at all.
Aerosolized antibiotics
Currently, inhaled tobramycin is the most widely used nebulized treatment for patients with bronchiectasis from either CF or non-CF causes of bronchiectasis. Gentamicin and colistin have also been used.
Chest wall pain may be due to respiratory muscle fatigue or overuse and may affect both children and adults (King 2012). It may be triggered by coughing or airway clearance therapy. For this reason, this symptom may intensify during an acute exacerbation of bronchiectasis.
Bronchiectasis may be related to diseases in multiple body systems, including the neurological system, and is associated with an increased risk of stroke and cerebral infection, impaired cognitive function and impact on sleep quality in patients with bronchiectasis.
This study, alongside the present study by Navaratnam and colleagues, provides compelling evidence that bronchiectasis is associated with elevated cardiac risk, that exacerbation frequency is associated with cardiac events, and that the severity of bronchiectasis is directly linked to elevated cardiac risk.
What Exercise is Good for Bronchiectasis? According to the American Lung Association, both aerobic and resistance-training activities can help improve your lungs, making them stronger and able to perform the task of transferring additional oxygen to other muscles during exercise[5].
But if you have a long-term lung condition like asthma, bronchiectasis or COPD, you're more at risk of the heat affecting you. And hot weather can cause your symptoms to flare up too. This could be because you're dehydrated and too hot, making you feel worse.
Your doctor may prescribe expectorants and mucus thinners to help you cough up mucus. Expectorants help loosen the mucus in your lungs. They often are combined with decongestants, which may provide extra relief. Mucus thinners, such as acetylcysteine, loosen the mucus to make it easier to cough up.
Inadequate nutritional intake, infection and increased work of breathing can individually or collectively contribute to negative energy balance resulting in unintentional weight loss and increased malnutrition risk.