Answered by SecondMedic Expert
General Physician · General Physician
Doctors frequently mix up two very common and sometimes similar diagnoses: COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease) and asthma.
Both of these conditions are characterized by difficulty breathing, and can share such symptoms as wheezing, chest tightness, or coughing. The biggest difference between the two is COPD is caused by long-term damage to the lungs from smoking or other irritants like air pollution compared to asthma which is caused by inflammation in the bronchi that can be triggered by allergens, cold temperatures, exercise, emotions and more.
It’s easy to see why doctors can confuse these conditions since they both have a lot of crossover with symptoms like shortness of breath and fatigue. Differentiating between them means understanding each one in greater detail which isn’t always straightforward when time is limited in an appointment setting. It takes listening carefully to patient history as well as doing things like spirometry tests—which measure lung function—to accurately diagnose whether someone has COPD or asthma.
Regardless of which condition it turns out you have, know that treatments exist that help manage both chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and asthma so your quality of life doesn't take a hit from having trouble breathing.
