Lung disease is one of the leading causes of death in the world, and is expected to increase in the coming years.
There are several factors behind the development of respiratory diseases: genetic, nutritional, environmental, infectious agents, cigarette smoke, environmental pollution.
Let’s see some pathologies in more detail:
- Smog and health [Traffic and consequently smog derived from it impact the health of citizens, increasing the pathologies caused by fine dust.]
- Smoke damage [Worldwide, an estimated 3.5 million people a year die from smoking; it has become the leading cause of death, killing 60 million people in half a century.]
- Asthma [Asthma is a chronic inflammatory disease of the airways, characterized by an obstruction of the bronchi. Breathing becomes difficult and can present a typical hissing sound. In many ways it is one of the allergic diseases: it is due to a disproportionate and erroneous reaction of the body to substances (allergens) that are harmless in themselves, present in the air, such as dust. But in at least 50% of cases it has unknown and allergen-independent origins.]
- COPD [Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is a chronic lung disease with a recent increase in worldwide mortality.]
- Pneumonia [An inflammatory disease affecting one or both lungs, generally caused by bacterial or viral infections. It is particularly dangerous for the elderly and debilitated patients.]
- Lung cancer [Lung cancer is the leading cause of death in Western countries. In Italy alone there are about 250,000 cases annually and 35,000 deaths.]