Pulmonology (Latin pulmo, logos – “the doctrine of the lungs”) is a branch of medicine that studies diseases of the respiratory system: lungs, pleura, trachea and bronchi, clinical manifestations of diseases, specifics of diagnosis, methods of treatment and prevention. The respiratory system includes not only the airways, but also the central nervous system, the chest (sternocostal frame, intercostal muscles, diaphragm), the circulatory system in the lungs. Therefore, in a broad sense, the field of competence of pulmonology also includes pathology of other organs of the thoracic cavity, morphologically and functionally related to the respiratory organs.
The organs that pulmonology studies and treats, in addition to the lungs, include: vascular and nerve bundles of the lung root, lymph nodes, thymus gland, diaphragm, etc. The main function of the respiratory system is to provide gas exchange in the lungs.
Pulmonologists are engaged in the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of lung and bronchial diseases. Surgical treatment of diseases of the lungs and other organs of the thoracic cavity is carried out by thoracic surgeons (from Greek. thorax – chest).
Pulmonology has close ties with such branches of medicine as cardiology, allergology, otolaryngology, intensive care and intensive care, oncology, transplantology.
Within the framework of pulmonology, an independent direction is distinguished – phthisiology, the field of study of which is the diagnosis, prevention and treatment of pulmonary tuberculosis. The problem of the prevalence of tuberculosis is one of the most urgent in modern medicine.
Pulmonology deals with the treatment of the following types of pathological processes:
Many respiratory diseases have a severe and prolonged course, leading to serious health consequences, shorten the duration and reduce the quality of life of patients.
Pulmonology has acquired special significance in modern medical science. Bronchial and lung diseases occupy leading positions in modern society, their share in the total morbidity of the population varies from 41% to 53%.
The rapid deterioration of the environmental situation, an increase in the level of injuries accompanied by damage to the chest and chest cavity organs, the growth of oncological diseases of the respiratory system, stress factor, occupational hazards contribute to the steady growth and rejuvenation of lung diseases.
An appeal to a pulmonologist usually occurs when characteristic symptoms of lung diseases appear: dry or wet cough, shortness of breath at rest or during physical exertion, attacks of suffocation, chest pain, increased body temperature. Lung diseases are often accidental findings during X-ray examination.
It is possible to suspect a particular respiratory disease already on the basis of complaints and auscultative picture of the lungs. The necessary diagnostic studies to clarify the nature of lung pathology are chest radiography, data on the function of external respiration, bronchoscopy, bronchography, computed tomography of the lungs, angiopulmonography. Of the laboratory methods for diagnosing lung diseases, the study of sputum for cytology, microbial flora, and atypical cells is of the greatest importance.
Treatment of lung diseases, depending on their nature, can be both conservative and surgical. Conservative measures in the treatment of lung and bronchial diseases are aimed at diluting sputum, reducing its amount and facilitating evacuation from the bronchial tree, bronchial dilatation, relieving bronchial muscle spasm, removing the inflammatory process in the bronchopulmonary system, normalizing gas exchange in the lung tissue.
Surgical treatment of diseases of the lungs and other organs of the thoracic cavity in many cases is an emergency measure to eliminate dangerous, life-threatening conditions. Planned surgical treatment of lung diseases is carried out after a detailed examination and the impossibility of conservative treatment of the disease.
The simplest and most effective measures for the prevention of lung diseases are quitting smoking and undergoing an examination by a pulmonologist once a year.
The Medical Directory of Diseases on the website “Medic Journal” presents respiratory diseases in more detail.
Bronchial asthma is a chronic non–infectious disease of the respiratory tract of an inflammatory nature. An attack of bronchial asthma often develops after the precursors and is characterized by a short sharp inhalation and a noisy long exhalation. It is usually accompanied by a cough with viscous sputum and loud wheezing. Diagnostic methods include evaluation…
Byssinosis is a chronic occupational disease of the respiratory tract resulting from contact with the dust of spinning raw materials. The clinical course resembles bronchial asthma: manifested by shortness of breath, cough, transient obstruction of the respiratory tract. For the purpose of diagnosis, the function of external respiration is investigated, radiation methods (radiography, CT of…
Berylliosis is an occupational disease with a predominant lesion of the respiratory system resulting from the harmful effects of beryllium compounds on the body. Acute berylliosis occurs as bronchitis or pneumonia. The chronic process is characterized by a gradually increasing cough, shortness of breath, severe asthenization and signs of intoxication. Diagnosis is based on anamnesis…
Bacterial pneumonia is a microbial infection of the respiratory parts of the lungs, occurring with the development of intraalveolar exudation and inflammatory infiltration of the pulmonary parenchyma. Disease is accompanied by fever, weakness, headache, cough with mucopurulent or rusty sputum, shortness of breath, chest pain, myalgia and arthralgia, pulmonary insufficiency. The diagnosis is based on…
Lung atelectasis is airlessness of the lung tissue caused by the collapse of the alveoli in a limited area (segment, lobe) or throughout the lung. At the same time, the affected lung tissue is excluded from gas exchange, which may be accompanied by signs of respiratory failure: shortness of breath, chest pain, cyanotic tinge of…
Asphyxia is a state of suffocation accompanied by a critical drop in oxygen levels (hypoxia) and an excess of carbon dioxide (hypercapnia) in the blood and tissues. With asphyxia, the phenomena of respiratory insufficiency increase acutely or subacutely: cyanosis of the skin, tachypnea, participation in breathing of auxiliary muscles; in the terminal stage, coma, convulsions,…
Status asthmaticus is a severe attack of bronchial asthma, which proceeds much more intensively and for a longer time than usual, and is not stopped by increased dosages of bronchodilators that the patient takes. It is manifested by prolonged suffocation, cyanosis of the skin and mucous membranes, tachycardia, increased respiratory rate. During decompensation, an acidotic…
Asthmatic bronchitis is a respiratory allergy that occurs with a predominant lesion of the bronchi of medium and large caliber. Manifestations are paroxysmal cough with difficult forced, noisy exhalation; shortness of breath of expiratory type. Diagnosis includes consultation of a pulmonologist and allergist, auscultation and percussion of the lungs, lung radiography, skin allergy tests, immunoglobulin…
Aspiration pneumonia is an infectious and toxic damage to the pulmonary parenchyma that develops as a result of the contents of the oral cavity, nasopharynx, and stomach entering the lower respiratory tract. Aspiration pneumonia is manifested by cough, tachypnea, cyanosis, tachycardia, chest pain, fever, and the appearance of fetid sputum. The diagnosis of aspiration pneumonia…
Asbestos is a form of pneumoconiosis that develops as a result of prolonged inhalation of asbestos–containing dust and is characterized by diffuse fibrosis of the lung tissue. The symptoms consists of general somatic disorders (malaise, fatigue, anorexia), signs of respiratory insufficiency (shortness of breath, cyanosis, deformation of the terminal phalanges of the fingers), symptoms of…
