10 Signs Your COPD Is Turning Gruesome

If you are enduring from COPD or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, then having acknowledging yourself with the symptoms of COPD exacerbation will help to keep the disease in control. In addition, it will even curb certain life threatening risks that might uproot due to sudden burst out of COPD signs.

COPD exacerbations usually kick-in from lung infection resulting due to bacteria or virus such as cold, flue or other illness. Further, exposure to certain harmful pollutants may even aggravate your COPD.

Flouting the symptoms of exacerbating COPD might speed up lung breakdown and hospitalization. It is thus imperative to seek for immediate medical treatment for curbing the consequences of COPD exacerbation.

If you experience any of the below-mentioned COPD signs, then you ought to rush to your doctor at the earliest to avoid grave consequences.

Warning Symptoms Of An Exacerbated COPD:

1.   Difficulty In Breathing: A person suffering from exacerbated COPD might experience breathlessness or shortness in breathing. If it turns worse or find it difficult to perform even little physical activities, then you ought to seek immediate medical assistance.

2.  Increased Anxiety: We all need oxygen and if you feel that you are not able to get enough oxygen and feel panicked or anxious, then it might affect your breathing ability as muscles tend to strain.

3.  Noisy Breathing: An exacerbating COPD may accompany rattling, gurgling, whistling and wheezing sounds when breathing. Wheezing indicates partial impediment of the airways by pus, mucus or other inflammatory stuff. Rattling or gurgling noise when breathing suggests accumulation of the fluid in a person’s lungs or presence of mucus in airways.

4.  Coughing: Severe or frequent coughing indicates an exacerbated COPD. Cough might be dry and/or bloody, green or yellow phlegm. In addition, attempting to sleep or lying down might worsen the coughing. With worsened breathing, it might become necessary for a person to sit on a chair instead of lying down or sleeping.

5.  Change In Nail Or Skin Color: COPD exacerbation may even accompany changes in the color of lip, nail or skin. You might notice purple or blue nails or the skin turning gray in color.

6.  Chest Breathing: Breathing from chest rather than abdomen might be another sign of an exacerbated COPD.  Your chest might move down and up quickly or slowly with irregular breathing.

7.  Disinterest In Eating And Sleeping Difficulty: Increased signs of COPD aggravation might interfere with a person’s ability to eat or sleep.

8.  Morning headaches: In individuals suffering from COPD, the low levels of oxygen might cause early morning headaches due to the accumulation of carbon dioxide in blood stream.

9.  Swelling In Legs Or Ankles And Pain In Abdomen: Abdominal pain and swelling are common signs of COPD and are usually associated with heart irregularities or problems that occur due to lung damage. If these symptoms pop up suddenly, then it might be sign of an aggravated COPD.

10.  Lack Of Speech: A person suffering from breathing problem might not be able to talk properly. In severe cases, using hand movements or gestures is the only means to communicate.

So, these are the 10 signs your COPD is turning gruesome and you ought to report to your doctor immediately if you experience any of these symptoms to avoid further complications.