Disorders of the Lungs and Respiratory System

Disorders of the Lungs and Respiratory System

Introduction

There are a number of diseases that persist in this world. All the living beings are susceptible to these diseases. The advancement in the domain of science and medicine has allowed for the development of vaccines that provide beforehand protection against a large number of known diseases. Among the various types of diseases, there exist the diseases of the lung and the respiratory system.

The term respiratory disease is a medical term that defines the pathological conditions that tend to affect the tissues and organs that allow for the possibility of gas exchange in higher organisms. This includes the conditions of the trachea, upper respiratory tract, bronchi, pleura, pleural cavity, alveoli and bronchioles. Moreover, the conditions of nerves and the muscles of breathing are also included. In this paper, an attempt would be made to highlight the most common diseases that are related to the lungs and the respiratory system (Whitcomb, 1974).

Discussion

The respiratory system can be divided on the basis of anatomical components into an upper respiratory system and a lower respiratory system. The upper respiratory system consists of the nose, nasal cavity, paranasal sinuses and pharynx. On the other hand, the lower respiratory system consists of larynx, trachea, bronchi and lungs.

The lungs are a part of a sophisticated system that expands and relaxes a number of times to bring in oxygen from the outside and expel carbon dioxide. Lung diseases can be caused by the problems that can occur in any part of the system. A number of diseases are related to the lungs and the respiratory system. The most common of them are asthma, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), chronic bronchitis, emphysema and cystic fibrosis. These are the respiratory system diseases that affect the airways.

Asthma is disease that can be caused by infections, allergies or pollutions. The airways of the respiratory system are inflamed steadily and therefore may tremor occasionally. This causes shortness of breath and wheezing. Another disease of the respiratory system is COPD. This disorder is characterized by inability of the lungs to exhale in a normal manner and this causes a difficulty in breathing (WebMd, 2013).

Bronchitis is a disorder of the respiratory system that involves the inflammation of the bronchial lining. It is mostly characterized by the symptom of overproduction of mucus. This leads to coughing that ...