Hello doctor, I am 35 years old. Before six years I have been using smoke-free tobacco less smoke and I was a heavy drinker and I quited it a year before. That is my story. My question is why can I not breathe as long as I feel normal I guess. But any strenuous activity brings my breathing down quick. I mean as simple as pulling the trash can to the road which is only 40 feet. Making love to my wife. Jogging for maybe two minutes. Please help. I currently take Symbicort twice a day, but I still want my oxygen back. I am only 35 with seven kids. They need me. I cannot leave them. Please give me some advice. I have been to the doctor twice only because I cannot afford to go anymore. One doctor said it could be the first stage of emphysema and the second doctor said it is chronic bronchitis. Please help.
Hi. Yes, your symptoms are suggestive of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). The diagnosis of chronic bronchitis is more likely. See you have been a chronic smoker and even smoking tobacco less smoke cause harm to your lungs. For the sake of your better health, you need to stop smoking right away. You should also start doing spirometric exercises at home. In the market, you can easily get three-ball spirometric exercise system that is also not too costly. You should continue to do walking and jogging. Once you stop smoking you would find gradual improvement in your exercise capacity. Now I need to know the following things: Since how long are you on inhalers? At what age you started getting the symptoms of breathlessness and why was the inhaler stated? Is your hemoglobin high? Any history of diabetes or high blood pressure? Revert with the asked details for better help.