Info?

My father was just diagnosed with emphysema, and i was just kind of wondering what that means, what is emphysema, what are the symptoms, is it life threatening, how will it affect his life?  i am very concerned and need some help with my questions.

[National Jewish]

Emphysema is a chronic lung disease linked with cigarette smoking and worsened by contact with industrial dusts and other toxins.  It is a disease that worsens over time.  There is relatively irreversible obstruction of airflow and actual destruction of the airsacs in the lung.  Normally the airsacs of the lung look like a bunch of grapes.  Emphysema causes destruction of the walls between the airsacs.  Over time these individual airsacs become one large airsac called a bullae.  When this happens there is less surface area for oxygen to get from the lungs into the blood and for carbon dioxide to get from the blood into the lungs to be exhaled.  When a person

[starion]

There's a lot of GREAT free info at www.NationalJewish.org, particularly their MedFacts and Understanding series about COPD and emphysema.
You can also ask your local branch of the American Lung Association to send you free info.  You can also check out on-line sites like www.copd-support.com.  Work with your dad's doc--help him to stop smoking & avoid all lung irritants, and follow the doc's advice.  We can live LONG & FULL lives with emphysema with proper care, diet & exercise.
Aloha,
Starion