What are the causes and symptoms of chronic obstructive lung disease?
There are several important risk factors for COPD: • Lifestyle. Cigarette smoking is by far the most important risk factor for COPD (80% of all cases). Cigar and pipe smoking can also cause COPD. Air pollution and industrial dusts and fumes are other important risk factors. • Age. Chronic bronchitis is more common in people over 40 years old; emphysema occurs more often in people 65 years of age and older. • Socioeconomic class. COPD-related deaths are about twice as high among unskilled and semi-skilled laborers as among professionals. • Family clustering. It is thought that heredity predisposes people in certain families to the development of COPD when other causes, such as smoking and air pollution, are present. • Lung infections. Lung infections make all forms of COPD worse. In the general population, emphysema usually develops in older individuals with a long smoking history. However, there is also a form of emphysema that runs in families. People with this type of emphysema have
