Pulmonology FAQs | Consult With Our Pulmonology Specialist

You need to carry:

A list of documents describing your symptoms in details (When, What, How Long).
Any recent (<1 year) medical investigations such as blood tests, CT scans etc.
If you have any existing medical conditions, carry along your prescription and list of current medications you are taking.
Your insurance details or company ID in case the hospital is on your health panel.

COPD, Asthma, Tuberculosis, ILD (Interstitial Lung Disease), Respiratory Failure, Lung Cancer, Sleep Apnea syndrome (OSAHS), Snoring, Pleural Effusions, Pneumothorax, Pulmonary infections, Sarcoidosis, Hemoptysis (coughing out blood), Lymph nodes (glands)/ Masses in the chest

Asthma, if not taken care of or controlled properly can prove to be fatal. Studies have shown that people who died of asthma, one third of them had mild disease. Thus, it is very important to keep your asthma in check and try and reduce your exposure to polluted air as much as possible.

Asthma can be caused by exposure to dust, pollens, cockroaches, house mites, air pollutants, perfumes, smoke and viral infections. It can be life threatening for some people and may require intervention. Few alarming symptoms are:

Breathing in hard that the abdomen is sucked inside the ribs
Gasping for air
Difficulty in speaking

You can do the following to reduce asthma attacks:

You need to find out what triggers your asthma attack and device an action plan to treat it accordingly
Get yourself vaccinated for pneumonia and influenza
Keeping a check on your breathing pattern
Seek medical intervention quickly for any symptoms that can prompt the attack
You need to take medicines as prescribed by your doctor
In case you are using an inhaler and despite that not feeling relieved, it is a must for you to visit the doctor

When the air passage between the mouth, nose and lungs gets interrupted and there is inflammation or swelling of bronchial tubes, you might be suffering from serious bronchitis. A prolonged cough and cold can lead to acute bronchitis in children, while older adults can be also face problems in breathing if medical intervention is not taken on time. You need to visit the doctor if:

You are having high fever- more than 101 degrees
Difficulty in sleeping
Coughing up blood
Gasping for breath
You are producing any discolored mucus

COPD includes two main conditions

EMPHYSEMA - In Emphysema, the air sacs and their walls get damaged and larger air sacs are formed instead of small ones.
Chronic BRONCHITIS - In Chronic Bronchitis, the lining of the air tubes is inflamed and thickened. This produces a large amount of mucus (balgam) and makes it hard to breathe.

Your doctor or pulmonologist will diagnose COPD based on your signs and symptoms, history, physical examination and tests reports. Below mentioned are few tests

COPD has no cure, yet with treatment you feel better, stay more active and slow the progress of the disease.

Quit Smoking
Avoid lung irritants like chemical fumes, dust, heavy air pollution, second hand smoking.
Medicines - Bronchodilators through inhalation route like puffs (inhalers), rotacaps, and nebulizers. They allow the medicine to go straight to your lungs and are more effective.
Vaccination - Flu (Influenza) shots and Pneumococcal (Pneumonia) vaccine
Oxygen therapy - Patients with severe advanced disease need home oxygen therapy.
Surgery - Some patients need surgical treatment.

Living with COPD : - Patients should manage their symptoms and slow the progress of the disease by:

Avoiding irritants/smoking.
Get ongoing care
Manage the disease and its symptoms.
Prepare for emergencies.

Sleep is one of the key factors that determine the health of an individual. How one wakes up in the morning is a fair indicator whether one is getting a proper sleep or not. Therefore, if you have been snoozing your alarm too often, you might be damaging your own health. Experts believe that under normal circumstances, one should be able to wake up refreshed. And if you are not then you might be suffering from a sleep disorder. This can cause neurological changes in your body and can reduce the productivity at work. Moreover, in the short run it can cause memory problems and severe hormonal changes in your body.

Sleep apnea is one of the most common disorders that often go undiagnosed. Sleep apnea should not be overlooked because its symptoms are so broad that it can interrupt your hard day at work and can lead to serious complications. The most common symptoms are:

Waking up with sore or dry throat
Loud snoring
Occasionally waking up with a choking or gasping sensation
Sleepiness or lack of energy during the day
Sleepiness while driving
Morning headaches
Restless sleep
Forgetfulness and mood changes

In addition to this, Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA) can have a negative impact on your health and can cause:

Heart attack and Blood Pressure
Diabetes
Lead to Weight Gain
Depression
Aging of Skin

It is a percutaneous procedure in which a needle is inserted into the pleural space and pleural fluid is removed either through the needle or a wide bore catheter. Diagnostic thoracocentesis is the removal of a small volume of pleural fluid, while Therapeutic thoracocentesis is the removal of a large volume of fluid to give symptomatic relief to the patient. Our specialists recommend that patients who have a pleural effusion should undergo diagnostic thoracocentesis to determine the nature of effusion and identify potential causes. The procedure is performed under ultrasound (USG) guidance

It is a procedure in which a tube is placed through the chest wall into the pleural cavity to drain air or fluid from the pleural space. Its indications are:

Pneumothorax (Air in the lungs)
Hemothorax (Blood in the lungs)
Pleural effusion (Fluid/ water in the lungs)
Pleurodesis

PFT measures how much air you can breathe in and out and how fast you can do it and how well your lungs are working to deliver oxygen to your blood. PFT is a painless test and a technician will ask you to take a deep breath and then blow as hard as you can into a tube connected to PFT machine.

PFT is the most important test for the diagnosis and management of COPD. PFT is similar to ECG of the lungs.

ILD
Sarcoidosis
Oxygen therapy
Bipap/ Cpap
Bronchoscopy
EBUS
Medical Thoracoscopy
Sleep Study
Lung Cancer
Smoking
Hemoptysis

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