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Dr. Andrew Rynne
MD
Dr. Andrew Rynne

Family Physician

Exp 50 years

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Suggest Treatment For COPD And Emphysema

I was diagnosed with Alpha 1 and have COPD and emphysema. I have tried so many bronchodilators and inhalers, yet SOB continues. Is it possible that I could have something other than COPD and emphysema and that s why the bronchodilators don t help. My sats go down to the mid 80 s upon minimal exertion. I m 65 and my 2 sisters have the trait, not the disease.
Wed, 29 Aug 2018
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General & Family Physician,  's  Response
Hi,

I see you are worried whether you have been misdiagnosed, probably due to your symptoms not improving with your treatment. It is very important that you do regular follow ups with your physician so that he can categorize the severity of your disease. They usually do it with spirometry or Peak flow meter. Secondly, you also need to have active management of acute exacerbations. The treatment of COPD and emphysema is usually tailored to the severity of the disease by checking the percentage of FEV1 (% of predicted). There are different inhalers like Long acting beta agonists, Long acting muscarinic antagonist and Inhaled corticosteroid which can be used in different combinations. One also have to treat infections that usually occurs during acute exacerbations with antibiotics.

Hope I have answered your query. Let me know if I can assist you further.
Regards,     
Dr. Qasim Zia
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Suggest Treatment For COPD And Emphysema

Hi, I see you are worried whether you have been misdiagnosed, probably due to your symptoms not improving with your treatment. It is very important that you do regular follow ups with your physician so that he can categorize the severity of your disease. They usually do it with spirometry or Peak flow meter. Secondly, you also need to have active management of acute exacerbations. The treatment of COPD and emphysema is usually tailored to the severity of the disease by checking the percentage of FEV1 (% of predicted). There are different inhalers like Long acting beta agonists, Long acting muscarinic antagonist and Inhaled corticosteroid which can be used in different combinations. One also have to treat infections that usually occurs during acute exacerbations with antibiotics. Hope I have answered your query. Let me know if I can assist you further. Regards, Dr. Qasim Zia