The cold weather can make life harder for sufferers of COPD.
COPD is a chronic inflammatory lung disease that causes obstructed airflow from the lungs. Symptoms include breathing difficulty, cough, and wheezing. While these symptoms may sound minor, COPD is a much more long term and serious condition than the flu or an allergy attack.
“They’re much more prone to developing things such as secondary pneumonias after the flu than people who don’t have COPD,” says Dr. Philip Slocum, Freeman Lung Specialist.
Inhalers are a common short term treatment for sufferers of COPD. Slocum said an inhaler’s primary use for COPD patients is to keep their disease at a level where they will not need to be hospitalized or sent to the ICU.