Lung Medical Reference
- What Is Lung Diffusion Testing?
What Is Lung Diffusion Testing?
- COPD and Humidity
Humidity that’s too high or too low can make your COPD symptoms worse. Get some tips to help you breathe easier, no matter the weather.
- What Is Pneumonitis?
Pneumonitis means inflamed lungs. A number of things can irritate and inflame your lungs, from chemicals to mold, bacteria, and dust. Learn more about this condition and how to manage it.
- What Is a Respiratory Therapist?
Respiratory therapists help treat a host of conditions related to your lungs and breathing. Find out what they do and when you might need to see one.
- What Is Aspergillosis?
Aspergillus is a common mold that’s just about everywhere and can cause serious problems in your lungs. Learn more about this condition, known as aspergillosis, from symptoms to how it affects your body and how to treat it.
- What Are Hyperinflated Lungs?
A hard time breathing while exercising or climbing stairs could be a sign of hyperinflated lungs. Learn more about this condition and how it’s treated.
- What Is Precordial Catch Syndrome?
From time to time, some young people may feel a sudden, knife-like pain in the chest that goes away fairly quickly. Learn what causes the pain and what it may mean.
- What Causes a Productive Cough?
When you cough and you bring up mucus, that's called a productive cough. Learn all the different things that can cause one.
- Brown Phlegm: What Causes It?
Your body makes phlegm, aka mucus, to sweep out harmful bacteria and allergens. The color of the phlegm can depend on the causes. Here are possible reasons why it’s brown.
- Chronic Thromboembolic Pulmonary Hypertension
Have you had a blood clot in your lung? Find out more about chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension -- your risk, common symptoms, treatment, and prevention.
- How to Make Hand Sanitizer
Washing your hands with soap and water helps keep you from getting sick, and hand sanitizer is a good solution when you can’t get to a sink. Here’s how to make your own.
- Stridor
Stridor is a high-pitched wheezing sound you make when something narrows your airway. Find out why you might have it and what you can do about it.
- What Is Orthopnea?
Are you short of breath when you lie down but fine when you sit up? It may be orthopnea. Find out why you might have it and what you can do about it.
- Tracheostomy
A tracheostomy is a hole that a doctor, usually a surgeon, makes in your windpipe to make it easier for you to breathe. Find out when you might need one and what to expect.
- What Is Pneumoconiosis?
Find out the symptoms and treatment of pneumoconiosis, a lung disease that sometimes affects miners, builders, and other workers who breathe in certain kinds of dust.
- COPD and Your Medical Care Team
Who’s on your COPD medical care team? Your GP, pulmonologist, rehab therapist, and nutritionist can all help you have better quality of life.
- What Is a Bronchoscopy?
A bronchoscopy is a medical test that lets doctors look into your lungs and airways using a thin tube with a camera and light at the end. Learn what to expect from the procedure.
- Intubation Explained
If you can't breathe on your own, intubation is the process that puts in the tube that connects you to a ventilator. Find out what you can expect from the procedure.
- Overview of Extubation
You're using an endotracheal tube (ETT). But you won't need it forever. Here's the process for taking it out so you can breathe on your own again.
- What Is Pulse Oximetry?
This test shows whether you have enough oxygen in your blood. Learn when you might need it and how it's done.
- Aspiration
Find out why you might be at higher risk of having something you eat or drink "go down the wrong pipe," and learn what you can do to prevent this problem.
- Pulmonologist
For some illnesses that affect your lungs, you might be able to get all the care you need from your regular doctor. But if your cough, shortness of breath, or other symptoms don't improve, you might need see a pulmonologist. Find out what diseases they can diagnose and treat.
- Mucormycosis: What to Know
Mucormycosis, also known as black fungus, is a rare but dangerous fungal infection.
- Atelectasis: Symptoms and Treatment
Find out more about the symptoms, causes, and treatments for atelectasis, a condition that can lead to a collapsed lung.
- Humidifiers: How to Use and Maintain Them
Find out about the different types of humidifiers, how to use them safely, and how to clean and store them.
- What Is Cystic Lung Disease?
Learn what to expect if your doctor tells you that you have one of the four main types of cystic lung disease, a condition that causes cysts to grow in your lungs.
- What Is a Lung Abscess?
A lung abscess is a pus-filled cavity in the lung that is caused by an infection. Learn what causes it, how to spot symptoms, and how doctors treat it.
- Oxygen Tanks and How to Choose One
If you need oxygen therapy, you have several options to choose from. Find out which ones may be right for you.
- 10 Tips for Eating When You Have Breathing Problems
If you have a breathing condition such as COPD or asthma, it can be hard to eat. Here are easy ways to make mealtimes easier and more enjoyable so you get the nutrition you need.
- Can You Prevent Pneumonia?
Learn what you can do to prevent pneumonia and keep yourself and your family healthy.
- Bronchiectasis
Bronchiectasis is a chronic disease that gets worse over time. But with proper care and treatment, you can manage it. Learn more about bronchiectasis symptoms, causes, diagnosis, and treatment.
- Common Lung Diagnostic Tests
Here are a few lung tests your doctor can do to figure out what’s behind your breathing trouble.
- What Are the Complications of Pneumonia?
When you get pneumonia -- whether it was caused by a bacteria, virus, or fungus -- there's a chance it could lead to other medical troubles. Find out what kinds of problems pneumonia can lead to and the types of treatment you may need.
- What Is Silicosis?
Most people get silicosis from a workplace where they inhale large amounts of silica dust. Learn more about the causes, risk factors, symptoms, treatments, and how to prevent this lung disease.
- What Is Hypersensitivity Pneumonitis?
Learn about the causes, symptoms, and treatment of a lung disease that can be triggered by breathing in particles in dust such as fungus, molds, bacteria, proteins, and chemicals.
- What Is Black Lung Disease?
Black lung disease is a job-related illness caused by inhaling coal dust over a long period of time. The condition mainly affects coal miners and is also known as coal workers’ pneumoconiosis (CWP).
- What Does an Endobronchial Ultrasound Tell You?
An endobronchial ultrasound can help diagnose lung cancer, infections, and inflammation. Learn what to expect if your doctor recommends this procedure.
- Types of Pneumonia
Learn about the symptoms for bacterial, viral, and fungal pneumonia, and find out what you need to do get better.
- What Is Childhood Interstitial Lung Disease?
Childhood interstitial lung disease (chILD) is a rare disorder that affects babies, children, and teens. Get an overview of what it is and its causes, diagnosis, and treatment.
- What to Know About a VQ Scan
What does a VQ scan do? Your doctor may request this test to measure air and blood flow.
- What to Know About Video-Assisted Thoracoscopic Surgery (VATS) Pleurodesis
Find out what you need to know about VATS pleurodesis, including how it works, conditions treated, risks, and recovery.
- Respiratory Failure
Respiratory failure is a serious problem that can be mean your body's not getting the oxygen it needs. Learn the types, causes, symptoms, and treatments of acute and chronic respiratory failure.
- What to Know About M. catarrhalis
Learn about the various symptoms related to M. catarrhalis and how to treat them.
- What Causes Pneumomediastinum?
Learn what pneumomediastinum is, what causes it and how to manage the condition.
- Types of Breathing Problems, Explained
If you don’t feel well, how you’re breathing can sometimes help your doctor figure out what’s going on. Find out more about the different types of breathing patterns and respiration rates like dyspnea, bradypnea, tachypnea, and Kussmaul breathing.
- Lung Sounds: What Do They Mean?
Do you know the sounds your lungs can make and what they might mean? Find out more about wheezing, crackling, stridor, and more.
- What Is an Incentive Spirometer?
This simple gadget helps you exercise your lungs so you can breathe deeply if you’ve had surgery or have a medical condition.
- Home Oxygen Therapy: What to Know
Home Oxygen Therapy can help get your body the extra oxygen it needs so you can breathe better. Learn more about how to get started with home oxygen therapy.
- Tuberculosis Treatment During Pregnancy
If you’re pregnant and have tuberculosis, you need treatment right away for the safety of you and your baby.
- Should You Test Your Lung Function at Home?
If you have asthma or some other lung disease, testing your lungs at home can help you track your health and head off trouble before it happens.