What Is The Difference Between Asthma And COPD?

Although both asthma and COPD cause an obstruction of the airways, both conditions have differences that are decisive for their treatment.

Difficulties in breathing normally, coughing, and other respiratory symptoms can confuse those who do not know the difference between asthma and COPD. Although both diseases have similar characteristics, they have differences that are decisive when choosing a treatment for each one.

As these are pathologies that cause an obstruction of the airways, it is not uncommon to observe that some health professionals have difficulties in making a correct diagnosis. Therefore, it is critical that patients know how to provide clear details of their symptoms, lifestyle and medical problems.

In this way, it is possible to suspect what type of damage the bronchi suffer to start the pertinent diagnostic tests and, of course, to adopt the correct therapeutic and preventive measures in each case. What are the aspects that allow them to be differentiated?

Difference between asthma and COPD

Respiratory diseases present with similar symptoms; for this reason, many are unaware of the difference between asthma and COPD. Although the two conditions have traits in common, their main difference lies in the loss and recovery of lung function, as well as their respective process of inflammation of the airways.

To explain it more clearly, the difference is that in the case of asthma the lesion of the bronchi is reversible, while in COPD it is persistent and progressive, without reversibility.

• Asthmatics are generally allergic patients, whose symptoms can appear or worsen intermittently, when exposed to certain factors.
• For their part, COPD patients have dyspnea all the time and are at greater risk of complications and seizures as time passes.

The prevalence is another of the great differences between both diseases. Most cases of asthma are diagnosed in children and under 14 years of age. In contrast, COPD cases are more common in adults.

Risk factors and etiology

Some risk factors and triggers have been identified in both asthma and COPD cases. However, in neither of the two diseases has its etiology been determined, with the exception of a small group of patients with COPD.

Excessive tobacco use is the main risk factor for Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD). Despite this, not all smokers develop the disease. The risk is high for both active and passive smokers.

Many additional causes have yet to be established ; however, it is believed that genetics, race, air pollution, eating habits, among others, play an important role in its development and complications.

Unlike COPD, whose number of cases is related to smoking, asthma is a disease whose prevalence has increased in recent years, especially in industrialized countries. For this reason, its development is not only linked to the genetic load, but to many external factors that intervene, in some way, in respiratory health.

Is it asthma or COPD?

A spirometry test  allows you to measure the functionality of the lungs. These tests, among other things, are essential for the diagnosis, control and prognosis of asthma and COPD.

But the importance of these tests is not the same in both conditions. Forced spirometry is the irreplaceable functional test for the diagnosis of COPD. The doctor can put together several factors to determine if it is asthma or COPD. These include:

• A complete history of smoking: Most of those affected by COPD are smokers or were.
• Age: asthma appears frequently in childhood. While the risk of COPD rises after the age of 40.
• Symptoms: Recurrent attacks, especially accompanied by allergies or eczema, suggest asthma. A persistent cough with severe phlegm, which gets progressively worse, may indicate COPD.
• Family history: hereditary characteristics are more recurrent in patients with asthma.
• Symptom development: People with COPD experience symptoms when they are at rest. Also, they tend to get worse over time, without a known cause. Asthma attacks can be caused by excessive physical activity or exposure to allergens in the environment. These almost always happen suddenly.
• Response to treatment: Asthma patients respond better to the effects of rapid-acting rescue inhalers than those with COPD.

Difference Between Asthma and COPD: Final Comments

Medical history is key to finding the difference between asthma and COPD. However, in either case the development of another respiratory disorder is not ruled out. For this reason, it is essential to know how to report symptoms in detail and monitor them.